My Old Flame
by SkyeMonochrome
Summary: Aerostolia knows who she is and what she is. But also knows, she is no longer who she was. She only has the scattered memories of her past and her old flame. (There will be a lot of Mature Content and many trigger warnings. Please do not read if you take faintly to ANY triggers.) (SSXNick) (SSXGage) (SSXDanse)
1. Chapter 1 Open your eyes

**Chapter 1; Open Your Eyes**

 _ **(NSFW WARNING!)**_

For as long as she could remember, she had been a synth. And for even longer than she remembered that, she had been a sex slave.. Aerostolia was considered a jewel in the eyes of the commonwealth. Ivory skin, long, wavy lunar hair with the softest hints of blue, a slender built frame. The only unusual feature being her eyes, which looked normal aside from the fact her iris' were electric blue, glowed and the two scars that cut across her face on the left side. One starting from the middle of her forehead and dropping down to her cheek below her eye while the other went through her left eye, being lucky she wasn't blinded. Her eyes, the most efficient sign of her race and the one thing she knew she could never hide. Aerostolia sat up, rubbing at her eyes and lightly scratching the skin below the collar that embellished her neck. A small sigh stifled its way past her lips. She wasn't ready for this.. Not for more moving.. Normally Aerostolia would be moved, continuously being bought by new men, only to be thrown away after realizing how difficult she was. She had thought this time was different. She had been purchased by a man, not for sex, but simply for companionship. He simply wanted the feel of having a daughter again and once the raiders had taken him out, off she was, again to be sold.

She slid herself from the bed, she had grown so accustomed to and after throwing together a black tank top with cut jean shorts, she tossed her long hair back into a messy bun, packed what little belongings she had and walked down the stairs, her eyes never moving from the floor as the slave traders, who had come to pick her up, readied their things. One of the larger men looked down at Aerostolia, a small growl coming from his lips. She quickly scrunched her face in detest as the man leaned into the other slaver and whispered, "Shame we can't try them out before selling, Am I right?" he laughed, only to be joined by the other. They laughed grisly at each other, then grabbed up their bags and guns. "Keep close slave. You wander off and you know what that collar will do. We intend to make it to Rivet City by sun down so that Jason can take you off our hands."

A small frown formed across the smaller Synth's lips, but she did as told and stayed close to the men as they made their journey into the commonwealth and it's ugly, unforgiving wasteland. It felt like hours they had been walking, up 'till one of the men gave Aerostolia a shove, pushing her into the entrance of the nearest building. "Hey! What giv-" she gasped as a hand slapped over her mouth and she was cut short. The man yanked her further back into the building and pointed at a group of nearby Raiders, who were cussing and yelling at each other. "If you hadn't gotten us fucking shot at, we wouldn't have lost the bitch!" One of the raider's screamed to his fellow man. "What the fuck do we give to him now?!" he hissed, slapping the other raider across the face, who only scowled and drew back his gun to pop the other as hard as he could. He quickly was cut short by one of the females in the group, who shoved both men back and away from each other. "So simple, we find another girl you fucking idiots." She hissed, her eyes slowly taking in every inch of the area.

"You guys split up," She said pointing out each direction for the raiders to go, "Check the surrounding areas." Each of the raiders went off their own ways, one of the males slowly making his way in the direction that Aerostolia and the two slave traders had hidden. One of the slavers cursed below his breath and whispered at the other. He quickly nodded, then took Aerostolia's arm. "We're getting out. He's going to play a distraction. We can't afford to have you taken by one of these dumbasses." Aerostolia only sighed. Right taken by one of _those_ dumbasses, because _these_ guys weren't? She only shook her head but followed suit after the taller of the male's whilst the other ducked and quickly made his way out of the building, to send off some sort of distraction. The man who had taken Aerostolia stopped her behind a desk, then looked ahead. "You stay here. Don't fucking move. I'll be back shortly." And off he went. Aerostolia frowned, not enjoying being left alone, especially in such a cruel and hostile environment. She gently pushed herself under the desk, pulling her legs up to her body and holding them tightly, so that her chin rested atop her knees. She kept quiet for what seemed like ages. One fire after another was heard. Eventually she shut her eyes, trying to desperately to drown the noises around her. After what felt like hours and after Aerostolia had momentarily dozed off, she quickly awoke to her wrist being grabbed as she was yanked, then thrown hard into the wall before striking the ground. "What the fu-!" she started, but was quickly silenced as she glanced up at the raiders who had been scouring the area moments before, above her.

The tallest male sneered and laughed at the 2 women and 3 other guys around Aerostolia. "I told you we'd find another." The girl hissed. Aerostolia shook and swallowed hard, her eyes beaming from each person. "Look," said one of the guys, "She's a synth. Look at those eyes. They fucking glow." The raiders laughed hysterically at their prize. "Do you think we'll get something cool for this one?" a male said teasingly, before the female chirped back in, "Oh we sure the fuck will." She said before the raider grabbed her gun and quickly cracked the butt of it down into Aerostolia's head, causing the smaller female to fall unconscious.

 ** _"_ _Run!_ _"_**

 _Bullets tore past her head as she ran and ducked, sliding below the shattered remains of the building in front of her. Her eyes frantically searched for that endearing voice. That one important thing she couldn't go without. Lost in thought, she didn't notice the loud explosion roaring from overhead as pieces of the building crumbled and dropped to the floor._

 **" _Aerostolia! Move!_ _"_**

 _She quickly glanced up, her body had frozen. The world moved in slow motion as she watched a large piece of debris, right above her head start to descend. Her eyes quickly glanced across the room, searching more frantically before…_

 _And then..._

 _ **There.**_

 _There_ ** _he_** _was._

 ** _"N…Nicky…_** _ **"** _

_She said quietly, his eyes wide with fear as he was reaching out to her, being the last she saw before darkness fell over._

Aerostolia screamed loudly as she jolted up, her body sticky with sweat. She gasped wildly, desperately trying to catch her breath, as her eyes widened and slowly adjusted to the room around her. Electric blue hues danced across the room in front of her and about the unusual things before her.

Where was she?

She looked down at her lap and the blanket that had slid off her body, had fallen into it.

Was this a dream?

She gently reached up, her fingers hooking below the leather feel of her slave collar. No. She wasn't asleep. She just wasn't.. She wasn't where? She slowly stood up, her eyes glancing across the large room. Many windows surrounded the area and a small elevator was in the front by the largest window. She slowly walked forward, nearly tumbling before catching herself on the red material of the dining seats that sat in the…. Room? She groaned and lightly rubbed her head, a small throbbing hitting the back of her skull. That's right. She had been knocked out by the raiders. But then, where was she?

Just then the door behind her opened, causing her to whirl around, her eyes locked onto the 3 large figures that walked in. "Hello, doll," One of them said, with a thick Australian accent. "Name's Colter." He hissed, then lazily gestured at the two goons beside him. "This is Petey and Steve. My body guards. Like the place?" he smiled cockily, gesturing at the large flat around her. "Called the Fizztop Grille." He said quietly. "Aerostolia slowly looked around, out the windows momentarily then back at Colter, with such confusion in her eyes. "Where am I?" she asked quietly. Colter threw his head back and laughed, before wiping his eyes as if he had told the greatest joke known to man, "You uh dear, are in Nuka World. Home of the most feared Raiders in the commonwealth. The Pack, The Operators and The Disciples. Welcome to your new home." Aerostolia fell quiet, her eyes searching across the room. Of course she was still enslaved.. But worse of all it just HAD to be raiders.

Aerostolia quickly frowned and gently slid down the wall, causing her to land on the seat of the small dining booth. "Are… Are you.." she started to add, which was quickly cut short by Colter's laugh following the two of his goons.

"Nah. You ain't mine. You're a gift for my second in command. The little shit needs to get laid. I ain't seen him with any girl since he joined into our group and he's such a particular one, especially with his type." He laughed, gesturing at the black and white inked sleeves that decorated Aerostolia's arms. She glanced down to her tattoos then back up at Colter, her body frigid. "My..My tattoos?.." she whispered softly, almost confused by this.

"Yeah." Colter added, "He likes a girl that puts up a fight and well those are more then enough proof to me that you are a bit of a fighter. Or maybe had been. Otherwise, what's the fun?" he teased. Aerostolia felt her bones grow cold as he uttered those words. A girl who puts up a fight? What does he mean by that? That he would just force himself onto her if she screamed? Why did this surprise her though, this was something she had grown so accustomed to. The men trying to force themselves onto the women, but she wouldn't give in so easily. A frown quickly shot over the black decorated plush lips of the smaller female synth. "Plus you're a short shit. Feel like that shit will play in well to the little perv's daddy kink." He teased, before shutting the door behind him, leaving Aerostolia to sit in the dark on her own and fester over the entire day. She looked down below her out the large open vast of space, her eyes following over the many raiders that were there. This place was huge and to top it off it was FULL of raiders. "I will never escape.." she said, her eyes starting to sting with tears.

The darkness had taken over. Oil lamps were now lit so that raiders could walk the busy streets. Aerostolia lie still on the bed that had been put up in the corner. She laid on her side, so that her eyes could drift out the window and glance at things, anything to keep her distracted. But it had become so dark, that she couldn't see well anyways. The only light in that whole Grille top was coming from the electric blue hues she had come to hate so much. Her eyes shut as she felt herself drift off. It was quiet. Had stayed quiet for a multitude of minutes, or so she thought. Aerostolia had only opened her eyes, when she felt the bed behind her, duck under the weight of another. She stayed silent and still, her back to whomever was sitting behind her, most likely her new 'Master.' Her eyes quickly down cast as she succumbed to her thoughts, darkness washing over like tidal wave after tidal wave. Her stomache and chest welled with anxiety, which made her tense once she felt a hand lie on the curve of her hip.

The hand gently slid from her hip and followed up her curves and along her frame. Aerostolia let out a sharp breath, before slowly rolling onto her back, desperately trying to make light of the man sitting beside her. "I.. I can't see you.." she started, which was quickly silenced by the feel of someone's lips, pressing hard against hers. Aerostolia went frigid and quiet, her body tensing as hands slid down her sides and gripped roughly at her hips.

"I need to break you in first baby girl. Make sure you ain't going nowhere." Came that low southern drawl. Aerostolia jumped slightly at the voice, then only nodded in accordance. She knew it'd be over faster if she just gave him what he wanted and seeing as the town was full of raiders, she couldn't exactly run or fight him. "Of course…" she said, her throat tight. The man quickly grabbed her thighs and yanked her, so that she hit back onto the bed. She inhaled slowly and shut her eyes as hands explored her body, eventually making their way under her clothes. The hands worked tirelessly, stripping Aerostolia down until she lie naked, her silhouette visible before the moon's light.

She quickly shut her eyes and tried to think of something, anything else. 'Drown it out..' she thought to herself, which was quickly short as she let out a sharp gasp from being penetrated, her eyes widening at the thick, large mass of flesh pushing inside her. Aerostolia quickly caught her breath which turned into heavy pants that rolled out into waves of moans as the man above her thrust slow, deep and hard into her wet folds. "P…Please…" she gasped, her mind a tad fuzzy from the… Pleasure?.. Yes, the UNUSUAL amount of pleasure that was engulfing her body. The man chuckled from above but happily obliged as he ground down hard into Aerostolia, his grunts turning into soft moans of pleasure. "Mmmm.. Daddy's little girl likes that, huh?" He whispered. Aerostolia quickly melted at his words, her body hot and rising in temperature from his voice. "D…Daddy…" she whimpered, feeling ashamed and dirty at the provocative name she had called the male above her.

The male didn't let up though, he groaned and let out rigid breaths as he pumped deep inside Aerostolia, his shaft throbbing with his hot release. "Mmm, let's make sure people know who you belong to." He said in a sensual grisly voice, his nails digging into the skin on her hips. Aerostolia moaned in delight, her hands sliding through his hair and her mind clouded by the horrible hold this stranger somehow had over her. With a loud cry she curled into her new owner, her nails clawing at his back, as she felt her body writhe with the wave of oncoming pleasure. "Ahhh! Daddy!" she screamed out, her wet folds tightening around his hot meat which then caused the male to twitch and give a deep thrust, his hot seed drowning deep into the girl's belly. "That's a good lil girl.." he added, quickly pulling himself from her and leaving her a sweaty breathing mess atop his bed. A shift of weight was felt before the side light flicked on. Beside her sat a man about 5'11, with longer red hair atop his head that was shaved down on the sides. A rough patch of hair surrounded his face, giving his goatee an unshaven look and on his face he sported an eye patch, covering his right eye, while a scar dragged through his left. And those lips. Those full lips, that she just wanted to kiss repeatedly, for some unknown reason to her.

Aerostolia, panting and gasping, stared at this man, who seemed more then drawn to her physique and face. "Aerostolia, huh?" he said softly before adding, "Porter. Porter Gage. But you, princess, can call me Sir, or Daddy when I'm fucking that tight hole of yours." He winked, an undertone of underlying tease in his voice. Aerostolia stared at Gage for what felt like ever, taking in every feature, from his hair, to his defined abs, to his bright vivid green eyes. This man was a raider? This gorgeous person, was supposed to be an evil man? She slowly caught her breath, unable to remove her eyes from Gage. He had since pulled his shirt back on and buckled his pants back up, but his eyes never left her. He leaned over and gently grabbed at the collar around her neck, before tugging her up to meet his face. Gage stared deeply into Aerostolia's eyes then let a crooked, but handsome smile, light up his face. "Synth, huh?" he added, before pressing his lips against Aerostolia's hard. "Don't matter by me." He said, before releasing her collar, causing her to topple back into the bed. "Get some sleep. We got a busy day tomorrow, Princess." He mumbled the nickname to her, which she assumed would be his pet name for her. A small sigh left her lips as Gage stood up and left the room, probably to go brag to his raider buddies about nailing the synth. For just a moment, while staring in his eyes, Aerostolia thought she had seen just the smallest bit of guilt? But then again, maybe her sleep deprived mind, desperately wanted her to believe that. Slowly she shut her eyes, before drifting off to sleep.

 _Where am I?_

 _Eyes opened slowly as they made their way around the.. Wait.. She sat up quickly, her eyes scanning the destroyed building she laid in. She looked at the ceiling, then back down to her own hands, moving them slowly to be sure she wasn't dreaming._

 _"_ _ **Nicky?**_ _" she called out into the nothingness around her. "_ _ **Nicky…please…**_ _" tears soon stung her eyes as she begged for that voice to respond to her, which then melted down her cheeks. She quickly reached up to wipe her tears, before noticing a soft glowing blue, illuminating her skin. She stared at her hands confused, moving them back down towards her lap. But the further they moved from her face, the less the blue illumination became. Terror and confusion running through her, she quickly jumped up and ran across the room to a nearby broken mirror._

 _She wasn't…_

 _She wasn't her anymore.. She looked like her, but the now glowing blue electric eyes, that replaced the eccentric soft ocean blue ones that were there, told her, that she wasn't her anymore…_

 _She was now a walking shell.. Living with her memories. Her hopes. Her dreams. Her nightmares.. And her feeling of love..._

 _Slowly her hands fell to her side as she glanced at her new reflection in defeat. She hadn't dreamt it. She really was crushed by debris. And now, here she was, waking up maybe years later.. A machine, lost and confused in this world._

 _Walking for days seemed to drag her down, but not as much as having to walk past Diamond City, knowing that just inside those gates, lie the love of her life, who she didn't even know at this point, after not knowing how long she was out, would remember her or not._

 **(A.N)**

 **Thank you so much for reading if you had. This is my own personal story featuring my OC Aerostolia. I've decided to go in a different direction then the typical "SS wakes up from 200 years of Cryostatis sleep." Story will feature Mature warning and includes SSXNickXGage Pairing. Story consists of triggers.**

 ** _PTSD_**

 ** _Anxiety_**

 ** _Rape_**

 ** _Smut_**

 ** _Gore_**

 ** _Drug Use_**

 ** _Abuse_**

 **By the way I do use a mod for Gage. This is the mod I use;** /en/mods/fallout4/mod-detail/3362987 **I prefer this look better then the original. ;P Enjoy to those of you who like it to 3 Thanks to the lovely Ataralyxius for this wonderful mod. Aerostolia's pic soon to come.**


	2. Chapter 2 A gift for you

The following morning hadn't been any less confusing as Aerostolia awoke. She had been instantly greeted by two other raiders who then took her down to the Nuka Town USA and put her to work. She had been circling the main square repeatedly, having been told to keep tabs on the remaining slaves and report any that were missing. Aerostolia sighed as she made her second round, when two raiders, probably from the Pack by the looks of it, approached her. Aerostolia frowned and looked down, trying to pretend not to see the two larger males who approached her and quickly backed her into a wall.

"Well fuck, if you aren't something to look at." One of the grizzly men said, his eyes sloppily staring her up and down. The other laughed in a stupid manner and got close to Aerostolia's face, causing her to flash her gaze below them and onto the street. "What, can't stare me in the face?" the man teased, "How fucking rude.." he hissed, before shoving his leg hard between hers and up against her crotch. Her bones chilled as she stared blankly at the two, her eyes shaking and her mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water and for those moments, she went blank.

 ** _"Are you okay?"_**

 _She glanced up, her eyes meeting his momentarily, before she shyly turned away._

 ** _"I'm so sorry.. I was.. I was daydreaming.."_**

 _That was a lie._

 ** _"Don't worry, I'm okay, Nicky.."_**

 _Another lie.._

 ** _"I just worry because… Well because I love you, Aerostolia.. I want this... I want US to work... You're the only thing I've ever been able to truly call mine.. In this entire life, not one thing has ever been mine... Except you... The one thing I couldn't be more proud of in this world.."_**

 _I love you.._

Aerostolia gasped as she snapped to, by then the second raider chuckled and leaned close to her, his hand grabbing her wrist. Out of fear she shut her eyes. She didn't know what else to do. She would either be beaten or raped for not staring these two idiots in the eyes.. How cruel and unjust this world was. Just then a loud thud was heard and Aerostolia's eyes shot open just in time to see one of the raiders drop to the floor, grabbing at his gut while the other kept his hands raised, trying to surrender to the now angered red head standing before them.

"W-We're sorry Gage. We were just playing around. We didn't know she was yours!" Gage only raised a brow at how stupid they sounded and quickly pointed them out of his sight. The one scrambled and bound off while the other struggled to catch his breath, before limping away. Once he was sure they had retreated, he glanced back to Aerostolia, gently pressing her into the building. Suddenly she wasn't so scared. She couldn't explain what Gage did to her, but around him, she felt… Safe.

Aerostolia exhaled quickly, then without warning thrust herself into Gage's arms, her own circling his waist tightly as she shuddered from each silenced sob. Gage stood still, not sure how to handle the situation at first. He stared up briefly at the wall, then slowly rose his hand to place upon her back, the other encircling her slender body. She gasped at his touch and quickly pressed into him. Gage then pulled her tightly to his body, his fingers sliding across her back which caused Aerostolia to relax and go silent. When her sobs had stopped, she slowly drew back, but just enough to look into Gage's eyes, while still remaining close enough to feel the heat emit off his body.

"Thank you.." she whimpered softly, unable to make the tears stop though her sobs had. Gage rose his hand and lightly slid his thumb down the tear streak that stained her ivory cheek. "You're **my** girl... No one's allowed to touch you but me." He hissed below his breath before softly biting into his lip, "Now do me a favour, I need you to go get something comfortable on. I need some help around the park." Aerostolia nodded, releasing Gage from her arms, a very unsatisfying feeling, before turning and heading towards the FizzTop Grille. Gage chuckled and let out a small breath, then walked to the front of the small town. He sat down on a crate beside the large welcome sign and pulled up his rifle, yanking a rag from his back pocket. He then tediously scrubbed at his gun as he waited for Aerostolia, his eyes only glancing up every so often to check his surroundings.

Aerostolia had made it back up to the top of the tower. She walked in a tad wearily, her eyes glancing across the room to the chest that sat at the foot of hers and Gage's bed. Really it was Colter's but he didn't utilize the space. She approached the chest and pulled the lid open before thrusting her hand into the chest. After digging around she pulled out her black tank top and a pair of cut off shorts, then made way to change into them. She lastly pulled on her combat boots, then bound towards the elevator. Normally she wouldn't be so thrilled about being captive. She usually planned escapes, but with Gage she felt _scared_ to leave. Like if she did, she'd not only lose whatever protection she had but then she'd have no one. Yet again. Her confusing memories weren't enough for her to go on to piece her broken past together. All she knew was that **now** , she was in Gage's care and **now** , this was safest. She had no one else to trust anyways.

When the elevator had finally hit the bottom, Aerostolia sprinted off to the front of the town, where she was met with a goofy smiled Gage. He slowly stood up and holstered his gun, then gestured to Aerostolia's hair. "I'd put that up if I were you." She quickly nodded and pulled her hair up into a loose bun, before tying it off with a fabric she had cut up and made shift into a hair holder. When she had finished she gave Gage a thumbs up and bit her lower lip. Gage approached her quickly, yanking her by her collar to his face to steal a long, deep kiss. He groaned into the kiss, his tongue prodding across hers as she had easily relinquished to his dominance. His other hand reached up and tangled through her hair, gripping a small handful to push her deeper into the kiss. How he begged to taste her. To mark her. To make sure they all knew who she belonged to.

When he had finally pulled back, Aerostolia was gasping and panting for air, her ivory face sporting a deep crimson dust. "Mmm.." he smirked, sliding his thumb across her lower lip. Aerostolia gasped softly, the completely dazed look on her face tangible in every feature. "D-Daddy.." she whimpered, her hands lightly gripping at the fabric to his shirt. this name aroused a small content laugh from Gage. How the hell could he do this to her? How could she just surrender to him so easily? She didn't know and right now she didn't care. What she did know, is she'd follow this crazy fucker to the end of the wastelands. Aerostolia gently pulled back, her hazy eyes glancing up to the emerald hues of Gage. "That's my good lil girl. Let's get going, princess." She nodded and cleared her throat, then ran after Gage who went sprinting out into the wasteland of Nuka World.

Aerostolia stayed as close as she could get to Gage without getting in his way. She looked around, her electric blue eyes whirring at each small area. Gage would occasionally glance back, as if making sure she was still following and not trying to run. But she had no interest in running. Her eyes circled back to the taller red head, giving him a glance over once more. It was so unusual to her, that someone who seemed as normal as Gage, was in fact a cold blooded raider. Aerostolia only snapped to, when Gage yanked her back behind a large bush. "What?" she said quietly, her eyes searching Gage's inquisitively. He glanced down at her, a small grin over his lips at her curiosity, then pointed to a nearby run down Red Rocket truck stop. It wasn't bad and would make a great settlement for a group of people, if there wasn't so many feral ghouls surrounding it. Aerostolia only nodded at Gage, before she was handed a small .48 snub nose pistol. Her gaze locked onto Gage. The amount of trust this man put in her, was beyond her. The fact that he could so easily hand her a gun and not second guess that she could in fact try to put him down.

"May I ask, why you trust me enough to hand me this?" she asked softly, turning the smaller device in her hands. Gage's ears perked slightly before he looked Aerostolia over, his eyes eventually falling to the piece of equipment he gave her. "Because if you shoot me, especially here and now, without enough bullets you'll be ripped apart by feral ghouls." He said softly, to which Aerostolia glanced down at her chamber, realizing he had only sported her a total of 6 bullets. She grew slightly mad at this thought, that he'd give so little before shoving the thought to the back of her mind. 'I am a slave after all..' she'd think silently to herself, before turning her eyes. Quickly she looks back in Gage's direction, only to notice the man had vanished. Panic started to well and rise deep within her gut and spread through out her chest. She whimpered and pulled back into the bush, her eyes desperately searching the wasteland for the man who had decided to take her. She frowned, then quickly smiled at the silhouette in the distance, her eyes focusing and working hard to fix on the smaller shape. When finally in view, Aerostolia froze, her blood running cold and her bones sending a spine tingling chill down her body.

"You…" she had only managed to mumble to herself as her eyes focused desperately on the foreign silhouette of this man. Quickly she shut her eyes, her hands covering her ears as she repeated without fault, "He's not really here.." over and over below her breath. A small shudder had over come her body, but slowly Aerostolia opened her eyes and faced in the direction of **_him._** As soon as her eyes opened the world spun into blackness and all she could see, was those pair of eyes and a hand reaching out desperately for her, until darkness consumed her vision and thought.

 ** _"Get up! Aerostolia! Get up!"_**

 _There was that voice again.. He was.. He was calling to her again. She stretched her arm out, fingers flayed as she reached and tried to vice herself onto this voice that had been poking in her mind._

 ** _'How do I get up?...'_**

 ** _"Run! What are you doing?!"_**

 _But maybe if she didn't run, maybe if this one time, she just sat here, then maybe it'd last longer. Maybe she'd be able to see_ _ **him**_ _again. Maybe she wouldn't have to return to reality, or wake up to find herself alone in the wasteland._

 ** _"I'm begging you! Run!"_**

"I said run Aerostolia!" and quickly, just like that she was snapped back to reality, curled behind the bush only there was no mystery guy. Instead, standing in front of her, shooting his rifle off as warning to each ghoul was Gage. "I said fucking run! I won't say it again!" he hissed. Aerostolia gasped and glanced at Gage, then in a panic jumped up and bolted off in the opposite direction of Gage. She turned, just enough to see him trying to fight off a larger hoard. It hadn't been just the few she saw earlier. Her mind was racing as she tried to process everything that was happening. He had saved her. In that instant Aerostolia glanced up and holstered up her gun before shooting off 4 ear shattering rounds. Amazingly, per each bullet, two ghouls were struck and dropped like flour. Gage stared back in bewilderment at Aerostolia as she fired off her last 2 rounds, sending the ghouls scattering. Gage turned and took this as a chance to unload his first clip off into the remaining ghouls, who shortly after, dropped to the earth below.

Gage was panting wildly, before he shot his eyes back at Aerostolia, the look of anger, relief and bewilderment locked onto his features. "You.." he said quietly, almost like a hiss, his words spearing through her, "What in the fuck were you thinking?!" he bellowed, his eyes locked onto Aerostolia. Quickly she shrank down and whimpered, her eyes dropping to the floor like a child. "B-But I.." she started, which was quickly cut off by the sharp words from Gage's mouth. "You fucking sat there! You were going to be killed! I had to scream at you to fucking duck out of sight! Why the fuck would you allow yourself to be in such danger?! Do you not fucking care about your own life?!" he screamed angrily, though this caused Aerostolia to calm down after she had realized, he wasn't in fact mad at her for possibly messing up the mission, but was furious because he was scared she was going to die. Strings pulled at Aerostolia's heart as she returned her gaze back to Gage, her small shrunken voice coming out in the sound of a shrill. "I.. I am so sorry… Sir.." she frowned, her eyes dropping to the floor. Her hands lied to either side of her body as Gage slowly let out a few breaths, his face returning to its' normal stature. When he had calmed down enough he gently grabbed Aerostolia's shoulders and with ease pulled her up against his chest. She tensed momentarily before melting into his touch, her body pressing up against the taller built frame of the red head.

"I'm sorry.." she whispered again, which was met with a soft kiss to her temples. "What happened?" he stated, his eyes burrowing into her, "You froze Aerostolia.. What happened? Why didn't you run?" she quickly looked down, scared to answer this herself. She didn't want to burden Gage with her problems, but also didn't know what else to say. With a soft sigh, she managed to look up to Gage, her brows turned in dissatisfaction. "I… I don't know.. I keep having the flash backs.. These weird dreams of someone.. Another life maybe.. Maybe the real Aerostolia's memories.." she whispered unwavering. Yeah the _real_ Aerostolia.. The one who died ages back and had since been replaced by a robot. Gage frowned, his brows furrowed as he looked at Aerostolia, trying to read not only her face but what she could've been thinking about. "Hey.. You're just as real as me." He said quietly, which had preceded to get a bewildered look of shock from the smaller synth.

"Y-You still think I'm real? B-But I'm a machine.. I'm not even the original.. I was a robot given her memories, her hopes, her dreams, her-" quickly Gage cupped her face and pulled her up to stare into his eyes, before retorting back at her. "You… Are **JUST** as real… as me and anyone here." He repeated. Tears welled in the corner of Aerostolia's eyes, as this had been the first time anyone had ever been so kind, let alone told Aerostolia, that regardless of her new mechanic body, she was still who she'd always been. The tears struck her face, leaving small trail stains behind which had been quickly wiped away by Gage's fingers. He leaned forward, gently pressing his lips to her forehead, before turning his back to her, his eyes scanning the nearby area. "Now get it together for me, princess," he cooed softly at her, "We still have to get this place running." He gestured to the Red Rocket, his beautiful green hue scanning over the entire facility. "Make a great little hold up," He chuckled, then glanced over to Aerostolia, "And I'm going to let you decorate her up."

Aerostolia only stared at him confused before glancing back up at the Red Rocket. "Why me?" she asked quietly, knowing it couldn't have been just chance that Gage brought her here. "Well," Gage started, "I could sense you didn't quite enjoy being surrounded by raiders, let alone having to sleep on that nasty bed of Colter's up in the Fizztop Grille." Aerostolia gasped and glanced back at the Red Rocket, her small body bouncing in place as she awaited the words, she was hoping he'd say. "So?" she pressed, her eyes lit up with delight as she stared at the Red Rocket. Gage only laughed and gave a small nod, before gesturing to the building, "All yours, princess. Fix her up however you'd like." Aerostolia squealed loudly like a child. She had never gotten a gift before, let alone her OWN building! She jumped in place then bolted over to the Red Rocket. A smile had taken over the gaunt course of her features as she ran about the area, mentally imagining what she could do to the place.

"I'll get you anything you need to put in there, Princess. All I ask is you have a bed set up that's large enough so when I'm not out on a mission I can come and sit here with you." She glanced back and nodded with a small smile. "So you'll get me furniture? And things I can decorate with?" she asked, a huge grin beaming. Gage again nodded, approaching her slowly before grabbing up her hand and planting soft kisses to each knuckle. "Anything my lil princess wants." He smirked. The remainder of the day had been spent with Gage traveling between Nuka World and back out to the Red Rocket, carrying random items and pieces of furniture. At one point he had gathered up a small group of raiders who had help him in carrying out items such as a larger queen mattress, also the cleanest, they had found, along with dressers, small tables, chairs, rugs and many other things she could spiff the place up with. For as long as she could remember, Aerostolia had never been this happy and how odd she found it that of all the people in the commonwealth, this home, belonging to vicious raiders, had become her happy spot. One of the raiders walked up to Aerostolia, followed by another familiar tall man. She quickly tensed as the two raiders from earlier approached her.

"We want to apologize." They said quietly. "Listen, we may be a bunch of idiots and considered the bad guys, but even we have rules." Gage added to the raiders apology. They both nodded, one holding out a small vase full of flowers, whilst the other held out a teddy bear. "We got you these for your place." Aerostolia softened and glanced from their faces to their hands. Even the RAIDERS could apologize to her, yet no one else could. She laughed at this thought then gingerly took the bear and vase. "Thank you." She cooed, her eyes glancing over the small worn bear. "I appreciate it.. And I forgive you." She added gently. The two raiders smiled, feeling proud of themselves then wandered off to continue helping move items.

"I don't get it.." Aerostolia started, "Humans… Ghouls.. Mercenaries… They all looked at me like I was a freak.. They ran and threw items at me.. treated me like.. Scrap…" she added, her eyes casting up momentarily, to see the sad look on Gage's face. "But you all just.. You got me this.. And brought me furniture and even apologized.. You guys didn't even scream when you saw me.." she added, almost curiously, "Why?" Gage looked Aerostolia over, his body unmoving as he carefully placed his words together in his head. "We don't understand synths ourselves." Gage started, "But we've also never encountered one ourselves to make heads or tails of it. We never had a reason to fear your kind, just like we never had a reason to hate you. Synths have never bothered us and we don't much take to boogeyman tales. To me, you're a human who just has a few extra pieces. That's it. I see nothing that differentiates you between human and Synth aside from those eyes of yours." He pointed, causing Aerostolia to glance down in embarrassment of her eyes which Gage retaliated by reaching below her chin to draw her face back up to meet his smiling one. "And they're the prettiest fucking eyes I've ever seen." He finished, causing a large shade of crimson to engulf Aerostolia's face.

Night drew soon enough. Most of the raiders had wandered back to Nuka Town, with the exception of Gage and a couple of his buddies who had started downing Gwinnette Stout before the sun started to set. Aerostolia had gotten most of everything done. She had cleaned the floors and walls to the best of her ability, utilizing the garage space as a bedroom and turning the old office into a bathroom. Between the two she had set up a small kitchen table with only 2 chairs, as she had known that she'd be sharing her small home with Gage, not that it was a problem to her. The bed had been made up as nicely as possible after Gage had found her some sheets and even a clean yellow comforter, her new bear sitting atop the bed. She looked around, admiring her work before wandering outside and down to the campfire that had been set up. She watched the raiders, their movements and listened carefully to how they spoke. So strange that these, very normal humans were raiders. If they hadn't been you'd think they were just typical boys. Talking about their kills, how they'd taken down ghouls or supermutants and surprisingly, even the chatter of women coming into play.

She wandered over to the fire and gently sat beside Gage, who had been laughing loudly, spilling bits of his drink on the ground. They didn't care though. They were all having a great time under the moon, laughing and drinking the night away. As the hours passed, the few raiders passed out. Gage had been lying on his back, his arms below his head as he stared up at the stars. Only when Aerostolia popped into his vision, just above his head, had he realized he wasn't the only one up. "Still up?" Gage managed to slur, in his mind very properly. Aerostolia snickered as his words practically mashed together, before lying back to place her head on Gage's chest. "I couldn't sleep. Sometimes I just try to avoid it." She added. Gage looked at her curiously, his mind booming with questions, though in his drunken state it was difficult to make light of them or even put them into a proper order.

"So... What's your past?" Aerostolia asked quietly. This wasn't something many people even asked Gage, let alone something he spoke about often. He sat there, as he thought on how to put his past into a short explanation. "Well.." Gage started, his eyes searching the sky unknowingly for answers, "I grew up in the commonwealth with my.. well I guess you'd call them my family.. I remember watching them cower and hide when the raiders would stroll through. They never hurt anybody, just passed through, grabbed what was owed and left." He mumbled as Aerostolia hung to his every word. "Well when I was 10 I made my life by taking odds and end jobs. Eventually I got into mercenary and caravan work, but after seeing those people still succumb to raiders, I had had enough. At 16 I joined my first raider gang. It was a strong gang, but none of them put that power to use. I had tried to talk to Harvester at the time-" Aerostolia quickly snorted, noticing Gage's expression which had turned from serious to a small joke. "Yeah yeah.. Funny name.." he laughed, "But anyways, Connor, or Harvester as he liked to be called seemed to like my ideas. After a year or so we tried to make peace with one of the other raider gangs. Connor sent me, thinking I could talk to them. I got there and not too long after realized I had been set up. He sent me there as a death sentence. Jokes on him though." He laughed, dropping his head back against his arms. "I ain't saying I made the best choices in life, princess… But in this kind of a world, it's step or get stepped on. And if you're as smart as I believe you are, then you and I both know, getting stepped on is a good way to get killed." He finished.

Aerostolia wasn't able to take her eyes off Gage. He had had just as difficult a life, making her wish she could just pull him to her and hug the memories away. She only turned enough to plant a small kiss into the crook of his neck, which was met by his hands stroking the back of her hair. "So may I ask.." she started carefully, as Gage turned his head to face Aerostolia again, "What... What made you want me?" she piqued. Gage only stared at her, his eyes then slowly meeting back to the sky as he thought on this. He had opened his mouth a couple of times, but would just quickly close it when he realized his wording choice wasn't right. "Honestly.." Gage started, "When Colter first told me he bought me a.." he cleared his throat at the words, "Sex slave… I had declined. I didn't want or need nobody. Then I walked up there to get you out and I saw you lying there in the dark. I watched you for a bit, watched the way your body moved.. Noticed the shakes from the crying you thought no one saw." He added which quickly caused Aerostolia to turn away in embarrassment. "Shit.. I saw you there and I saw myself.." Aerostolia glanced back at him, her eyes softening and aware as he continued to talk, "You looked just as broken as I did when I left home the first time. Lost. Not a god damned person in the world. You don't even know who you are or what you're capable of." He said, his eyes now staring at his own hand that was held in front of his face, "I thought… Yeah she's alone…. And I'm alone.. So.. why not be alone together." He finished before rubbing at his tiring eyes.

Aerostolia didn't want to press as she could see just talking was frustrating for him. She let a small smile befall her lips as she laid into Gage's chest, his heart beating in a sweet rhythmic pattern in her ear. Surely enough, Aerostolia fell asleep followed shortly by Gage, who kept his arms encircled around her the entire night.

 ** _"Please.. wake up.."_**

 _The voice?.. He's back.._

 ** _"I'm begging you to wake up…"_**

 _But why? She was enjoying lying here. She was enjoying the warmth. She was enjoying just existing in that moment… A hand grabbed her shoulder, shaking at her to open her eyes, but she just.. She couldn't. Then if she woke up he'd be gone.._

 ** _"If you… don't wake.."_**

 _This the first time the words were coming in so… cut apart and blurred. Confused, she sat up and glanced around at the darkness surrounding her._

 ** _"Please... wake….. Help!... Aero-."_**

Quickly Aerostolia shot awake, her body glistening with sweat as she gasped to catch her breath, feeling as if she couldn't get enough air into her lungs. Panic started to well inside her which quickly shut down as a pair of strong arms embraced her. Aerostolia glanced down at the bed she had been moved to. Beside her was Gage, lying under the blankets with his shirt off. He had awoken partially, but it was still obvious he was practically asleep. His arms tightened around her small waist as he fought back the urge to pass back out into his drunken stupor. "S-Sir.." she muttered softly. Gage glanced up at her from under his lidded eye, the sleep and exhaustion still apparent on his face. "You were crying... in your sleep.." he whispered below his breath, clearly too tired to think straight, form proper sentences or really get loud. She nodded and wiped at her moist eyes, her hands gently grabbing hold of Gage's. "Thank you.." she ushered as Gage had pulled her back into his grip. A small content sigh fell from his lips as she nestled into him, his eye once again falling shut with sleep. In that moment, Aerostolia knew, she'd rather be nowhere else, then lying in this bed with him.

 **(A.N)**

 **Ahhh thank you if you're still reading. Keep in mind I don't write fanfics a whole lot but wanted to give it a go. I realize that I may have Gage acting a tad differently then in the game, but i'm also acting him out the way I perceive him being 3 I hope you guys enjoys ;3; I will try to update as much as possible. Here's the link to a drawing I got done of Aerostolia (Her hair is supposed to be much whiter) She also has tattoos. I will add more links later of her :D** **s/m5mf8un23ej9ic5/kelseyfallout_by_ ?dl=0 (ART IS BY MY FRIEND SPHINXLING AND IT BELONGS TO ME DUE TO IT BEING MY CHARACTER DO NOT USE OR REDISTRIBUTE.)**


	3. Chapter 3 Welcome to the Wasteland

_**Bang.**_

There went one of the last few rounds.

 _ **Bang.**_

She was almost out of bullets. Aerostolia glanced down at the chamber of her pistol and frantically looked around for somewhere to hide.

Her and Gage had made way down to the Zoo after Gage told her he wanted to start clearing out the sections of Nuka World, so that they could distribute each piece of the properties out to the raiders. After all what was the point of staying in the amusement park if you didn't even have the whole place to run free in? Upon arriving though, they had met a man by the name of Cito. Though his English wasn't well he had explained to the two of them that there were 'monsters' running amuck the Zoo and that he had feared for his family's, a group of gorillas, well beings. Gage had anticipated just killing the idiot and taking the Zoo, because the fact someone was there could grow conflict, but Aerostolia on the other hand, begged and persuaded that Gage allow him to live as he had done no wrong and that if they helped, Cito may have no issue sharing the Zoo. Reluctantly Gage had agreed, only because he didn't wish to have a dispute over it while monsters ran about.

Only 45 minutes into wandering did they come across one of the first monsters, which looked like a rather large mutated Alligator. The large creature reared back on its hind legs and let out a blood curdling cry, one that sent chills down Aerostolia's spine. The creature's black eye fell upon Aerostolia and with speed that outranked the creature's torso, it had taken off After her. Gage grabbed Aerostolia by the wrist and quickly guided her away, his eye frantically searching the ruins of the Zoo for any safe haven. In his effort to dodge the creature's line of sight, he quickly turned and ended up in an old exhibit for bears.

The gatorclaw had quickly backed them into one of the corners of the cage and tried making a run at Gage. Out of fear for Gage's life, Aerostolia shot at it and thus put herself into the predicament she was in. She quickly rolled as a large clawed hand swung at her, just barely missing her face. Aerostolia tripped and tumbled to the ground, her back against the bars. Her eyes grew wide as the gatorclaw backed her into a corner, with no way to escape. She glanced at Gage who had jumped back at the mutated creatures attack and was aiming his rifle up to the creatures head. With a quick jerk, he fired a round into the animal's skull. Aerostolia held her breath as she watched the creature, which only glanced back to Gage and let out a blood curdling cry. It quickly averted its gaze back to Aerostolia, who had become the main target, it's large hand lifting high into the air before it lashed out with great exertion and speed. She had jumped up and tried to duck but let out a loud cry as the creature struck her side and sent her flying into the bars of the cage before she plummeted into the dirt.

"Aerostolia!" Gage screamed as he fired round after round into the creature's head, his vision overwhelmed with the heated red. With each hit the creature cried out until one smacked him straight into the eye, instantly silencing the creature, which then dropped into a pool of its own blood and dirt. Gage took a minute to catch his breath, panting hard, before he quickly dashed to Aerostolia, who was gasping and grabbing frantically at her side. His eyes widened at the sight, the amount of blood that was strewn about the ground and stained into her clothing. "Jesus.." he whispered, before yanking his rag from his back pocket out to press it tightly into Aerostolia's seeping wound.

Aerostolia let out a shrill cry, her back quickly arching at the pain as her eyes shut. She grit her teeth at the pain and let out a small whimper, her watery eyes barley making Gage's features. Gage's face had lost all colour and he seemed distraught and distracted as his eyes were looking over Aerostolia's wound and quickly glancing at the ludicrous amounts of blood she had lost. "Stay with me, princess.." he whispered softly, noticing the faded and somewhat hazy look that was looming over her eyes. "C'mon baby girl.. I need you to stay with me." He said louder, trying to keep Aerostolia's lidded eyes open. She glanced from his glossy green eye up to the top of the bars, where she swore she could hear **_his_** voice, humming sweet 50's music in her ear.

 _ **Nicky…**_

 _Aerostolia slowly sat up, the 50's music humming low in the background. Her eyes glanced down at the sweet glowing yellow ones below her, fingers dancing across his broad, weathered faux skin chest._

 _ **"Morning handsome."**_

 _She whispered in the softest of voices before leaning down to plant a tender kiss across his cheeks and forehead. A gentle groan came from below her, as Nick slid his hands, the metallic lining of the skeleton one causing goosebumps to arise over her skin, across her soft frame._

 _ **"How could I have ever been so lucky to have gotten you?"**_

 _He cooed softly. Aerostolia smiled and gently slid her fingers across the bridge of Nick's nose. He had a point though. Most people wouldn't be interested in his type. A synth. A walking machine. But to Aerostolia he was just as man as everyone else. He had emotions, he felt pain, he felt happiness and guilt. That made you pretty human to her. She only had wished the poor man hadn't dealt so much damage to his outer covering. His wires were exposed in his throat on the left side of him and his right hand didn't even have the skin casing that was supposed to protect his titanium skeleton. But none the less, Aerostolia loved every inch of him._

 ** _"Stay with me.."_**

 _Why would she ever leave?_

 ** _"Stay with me.."_**

 _She was dreaming again.._

A gasping Aerostolia snapped out of her daze and shot up into a sitting position, her body looming in shakes. Gage was right behind her and gripped her shoulders, gently pulling her back against his chest to steady her. She whimpered slightly as she glanced down at the stimpak, still sticking in her chest where Gage had stuck her. "W-Wha.." She started. Gage shushed her gently and kissed at her temple, his hands tight around her waist. Her side had been bandaged by what appeared to be a torn rag and pieces of Gage's shirt. She looked back at Gage, an expression of confusion on her face. "Your heart stopped.." he said quietly, his eye unable to meet hers. He stared at her legs for what seemed like ages before he opened his mouth to speak. "I thought.. I thought maybe the stimpak.." he drifted off, as Aerostolia slowly reached up, her hand gripping the syringe before giving the item a quick tug. A loud sigh of relief mixed with pain fell from her lips. "Thank you, Sir."

Gage quickly jerked her back into his arms and buried his face into the crook of her neck. His body shook as his grip tightened around her waist, as if scared to let her go. "I was so… I thought you were…" he said in a quiet, broken voice. Aerostolia gently leaned back and slid her hand across his arm, her head turning to meet his.

"I'm here.." she whispered softly.

"What happened?" Aerostolia stared at Gage blankly over his question. She didn't know how to answer. She straightened herself slightly, to which Gage lightly released his grip, and cleared her throat. "I… I saw… My-Her.." she corrected herself, "Life. I finally.. I finally have a face to the man but I still don't understand who he is…" Gage only frowned slightly, having briefly heard Aerostolia talking in her sleep the other night about a man named, Nick. It had only made him…. Angry. It made his chest flare up and he felt heat rush to his face. "Nick right?" he stated, which only made her stare at him in shock. "You were talking about him in your sleep." Gage added, his eye unmoving as he stared at the ground. Aerostolia frowned and quickly retreated her hand from Gage's arm to nervously rub at her own. "I don't mean to Sir.. He's from her old li-"

"No. He is from YOUR life. YOU are still her. No matter how you deny it. You have her thoughts. her emotions and personality. Whether you wanted it or not, you are her… And he'll always be there.. won't he.." He frowned, his hands tightening against her waist. She cringed slightly and sighed, for the first in her life, unknowing of how to reply. "Sir.." she said quietly, to which Gage quickly corrected her whilst mumbling under his breath, "Just call me Gage.." Aerostolia a bit taken back gave a slight nod before rewording her sentence. "Ah… Gage…" she said quietly, though his name made her heart rate spike into her throat, "I don't understand a majority of what's in my head.. I don't understand he-.. My past.." she said as if it was now some foreign term to her. "I don't know who he is.. I can only put a first name and face to him.." Gage watched her intently, his eye following how nervously she held her body, shaking and frail, probably from the injury as well, which quickly made Gage forget his momentary anger. Before Aerostolia could finish her explanation, Gage had cut her off and forced her to lay back, his hand gently trailing down to the wound that still seemed to fight each stimpak.

"It's having a hard time healing," He stated. Aerostolia confused, stopped speaking of Nick, making the assumption Gage was too upset or angered to hear about her old lover. Especially since she now belonged to Gage.

Her body was his and of course he didn't want to think of another man touching what's his. It made him nauseous and quickly irate at the thought. His eyes traveled down to the collar around her neck, before trailing to her wound. "How are you feeling?" he asked quietly. Aerostolia glanced up from where she was laying and let out a small breath, that sounded rigid and hoarse. "I think I've had better days.. but sitting here isn't going to get this area.. I'm fine we can continue.." she started before being cut short by Gage. "No. Absolutely not. You can barely stand let alone walk and fight off these dumb creatures. I shut the door to this cage. Nothing else will be able to get in and our friend here is dead. I can start up a fire and make some use of the meat. We can stay here for tonight. I don't see that wound healing up anytime today. You need to rest." He stated before jumping up to his feet and wandering around to pick up scattered branches and twigs.

Aerostolia watched Gage as he started up a fire, just close enough to her for warmth but far enough away that she wouldn't accidentally burn herself. She glanced up to the sky as Gage pulled out a knife and started sawing into the dead creature's body. It's not that it grossed her out, but right now she just didn't want to visually see that she'd be eating the thing that nearly killed her. After a few hours had passed and dinner had been eaten, Gage was wandering the cage, his eye glancing into the darkness surrounding them. Aerostolia knew he didn't trust running into another one of those creatures again.

"S-Err.. Gage," she quietly corrected, which resulted in the larger male adverting his gaze to her. "You can come sit here by me. If the cage is shut nothing will come. You said so yourself.. right?" Gage opened his mouth to debate against her but then quickly bit into his lip as she had been right and he didn't want to be seen as some hypocrite. He slowly walked over to her and dropped down beside her, his eye falling down to the blood soaked make-shift bandage on her side. "Does it…. Does it still hurt?" he asked softly, his face shadowing a sorrowful expression.

Aerostolia gently raised her hand, her fingers grazing across Gage's jaw line which caused him to lay his head against her hand. She smiled and leaned forward, giving Gage a tender kiss to his forehead. "It's okay. It'll heal. Besides I'm sure you can always distract me." She said innocently, though Gage's smirk said otherwise. He chuckled and looked Aerostolia up and down before he gently lied back against the ground, his head resting on his folded arms. "Should really think about your words before you say them, Princess." Aerostolia only flushed at this and lied back, her head resting on Gage's chest.

The two remained silent, both staring at the stars and clouds above them, though Gage's mind had much more on it. Nick. That was all he could think of. This other man who used to love Aerostolia, who used to touch her. It almost made him feel guilty, though he quickly shoved that thought to the back of his mind. "You won't ever just up and vanish on me, will ya?" he said quietly, his hue slowly making it's way to Aerostolia's face. She looked at Gage silently and perplexed, before parting her lips to speak. "What reason would I have?" but she knew the look on Gage's face. She knew all too well he was thinking of this Nick character. "Gage.. if you're asking about Nick.." she said, Gage quickly sat up, his eye drilled into her as he awaited her response, "As much as I wish I could understand my memories, I won't leave. I don't know who this Nick is. Or even where he is for that matter. As much as I know, he could very well be dead. Right now I'm here with you and so long as you do me no wrong I will loyally follow you anywhere in the wastelands.

Gage watched her features carefully, before letting out a small sigh which was followed by a light smile. "I had hoped you'd say that Princess.. And I believe you.. I believe you won't leave.." he whispered as he reached up to Aerostolia's throat, his fingers quickly unlatching the collar with ease. Once the collar dropped, a gasp left Aerostolia's lips. She slowly reached up and traced her fingers around the sensitive skin that had hidden below the black belt for so long. "You, You'd let me walk without a collar?" She said softly, her eyes nearly lit up at the thought that she could be trusted so much. "I will. I trust you won't leave. I'm granting you freedom, though from time to time, with of course a guard, I'm going to occasionally need you and some of my men to go into Diamond City. We got a guy up there who usually brings in some shipments of.. Well.. Let's just leave it at that. I trust you more then my bone headed dirt bags. But see I can't just go leavin' or Colter will throw a kid fit. So what ima do, is stock you up, Princess and you're going to lead the bone heads up to Diamond City and make sure I get my shit right. Of course we gonna need to finish up here and get that wound of yours fixed." He gestured. Aerostolia only smiled and gave a nod, happy that she was given a job that had more meaning then ratting on missing slaves.

"I'll be better by the morning." She smiled, before lying back against the dirt once more. Gage looked down at her and pushed her hair back from her face, his fingers tucking a bit behind her ear. "Get some rest. You got a long walk to Diamond City ahead of you doll." He said quietly, before leaning back against the cage bars behind him. Gage stifled a yawn and rubbed the back of his neck, his eye making it's way to the now sleeping female. "Damn… The hell are you doing to me…" he said softly, before kicking some sand over the fire to snuff it out.

 ** _'I don't want to set the world on fire, I just want to start a flame in your heart~'_**

 _Sang the Ink Spots in the background. Nick's hands rested on her hips as they swayed gently in sync to the music. Nick would occasionally take her hand and give her a spin, before slowly pulling her back into his chest, his chest vibrating with the low hum he made to the music. A metallic finger delicately cupped her chin and lifted her face to his._

 _There_ _ **he**_ _was._

 _He was a gen 1 synth, though much more weathered. He had lived for well over 200 years after all. Eyes, an eccentric neon yellow, glowed dimly against the faint light the candles gave off in the smaller room. Though his wires were clearly visible through his neck, he couldn't be more handsome. Not to her anyways. Aerostolia slid her hands delicately across his jaw line, her thumb trailing the soft and skin like texture of his lips. Nick glanced into her eyes, gently pulling her by her waist against his body._

 ** _"I could've never done enough right in my life time, to ever deserve someone like you.."_**

 _Just like that he had filled the space between them and pulled her into a deep kiss, his hands trailing down her sides and the gentle curves of her back. She shuddered at his cold metal fingers and arched into the taller male, her lidded eyes glancing up into the hues of her lover._

 ** _"Nick Valentine… You have done ALL the right in your life to deserve me.."_**

 _Nick leaned forward, pressing his lips tenderly to Aerostolia's before sliding his hand down to squeeze her left one, his fingers toying with the gold band on her finger._

 _ **"You are so truly amazing.. I love you, Aerostolia Valentine…"**_

The next morning had been horrible on Aerostolia. She woke up with a healed wound, but essentially felt like shit due to how she slept the night before. All she could think about was Nick. His face. The weird memories. How he smelt of cigarettes and the wasteland. Oddly how his skin felt, almost like human's but more synthetic. How electrifying it was when he'd kiss her. All morning he was all she thought about and Gage could read it all over her face. She had been silent most of the day. They had no problems running into anymore Gatorclaws and had actually managed to shut down the machine that was breeding them, but through it all, she hadn't spoken one word to Gage and it was officially bothering him.

Gage quickly halted in front of Aerostolia which caused her to bump into his chest and topple backwards onto the ground. "Hey! What's the deal?!" She hissed, which quickly halted once she saw the angered look on Gage's face. "Yeah. Fucking right. The fuck's the deal. You nearly die, now you can't fucking talk to me? What realized you were too good for me?" he narrowed his gaze. Aerostolia gasped, taken back that he'd think so much of her. "No! I don't think I'm too good I've just been.. Distracted.." she trailed off.

"By what? What's so much you can't tell me?!" he yelled, his rage obvious. Aerostolia only stared at him and let a small sigh fall from her lips. "I dreamt of.. of him again." she said softly, only to notice Gage's expression turn from one of anger to one that was much harder to read. "So.." he started. Aerostolia only shrugged and let out a small breath she had been holding, "I remember his face.. His whole name.. And then there's something weird that I thought I saw.. but I can't tell if it's a memory or dream so my brain could be fooling me." Gage only stared at her and glanced down at his boot which he then kicked into the dirt, sending a few rocks flying across the ground. "What do you want to do about it." he asked bluntly, which confused Aerostolia.

"What do you mean?"

"Do you want me to find him for you? Do you want me to send someone out and get information? What do you want?" he asked again, though this time obviously much more seriously. "Tell me what you want Princess." he said softly. Aerostolia only stared at him, unsure if this was some sort of test, or if he genuinely wished to know. Either way she feared the outcome to her true answer. "No. I don't wish to do anything.. I want to finish our mission." she stated, only to get a look of shock, followed by an approving nod from Gage.

"Anything you want Princess."

After returning to Nuka World and getting her wound better looked at, Gage had stocked up a bag for her, along with 2 dumb goons he was sending with her. "Now remember the goal. Get in. Give him what he wants. Get our shit and get the fuck back here. In one goddamned piece. Ya fucking hear?" Gage said the last bit, specifically to the goons he was sending with Aerostolia. "I want her back in ONE fucking piece." he hissed, which was responded with by several nods from the goons. "We gotcha Gage." Gage quickly glanced to Aerostolia and vice gripped her into a hug, pressing his lips repeatedly into her temples and cheeks. "Be safe babygirl.." Aerostolia gave a sweet smile before pecking Gage's lips quickly. "I will come back Gage. I swear on my life." she smiled. Gage gave her one final kiss as he watched Aerostolia and his two goons, Dusty and Becker, leave Nuka Town.

The ride back to the station had felt long and the walk past Sanctuary Hills felt even longer. They had made their way down towards College Square but came to a halt when many feral ghouls were heard screaming in the distance, followed by loud gunshots. Aerostolia quickly ducked behind a nearby broke down car and gestured for Dusty and Becker to do the same. Dusty had somehow gone missing and Becker, in a state of panic started raising his voice, which only made the ghouls turn their attention to him. Becker started firing his gun wildly into the crowd of ghouls behind Aerostolia, the look of fear evident on his features. One whizzed right by her face, ricocheting off the car and splitting the window right beside Becker.

"Becker! Calm yourself!" Aerostolia screamed, only to no avail as ferals ran from behind her and started lunging at Becker. Aerostolia watched in horror as her help was torn apart in front of her, then as if on queue bullets came flying from behind her and into the crowd, downing the majority of the ghouls. Aerostolia stared bewildered at the dead ghouls and at the body of her dead comrade. The entire world fell silent for those few seconds. She dropped to her knees, her ears no longer registering sound as she grew lost in her head. How will she get back? How will she survive alone and be safe? Where was Dusty? Why had he vanished shortly before Becker's demise? Had he known this would happen? Would he run to Nuka World and simply say Becker and her had died? So would they even be looking for her? Suddenly reality started moving as normal as a now taller male in large armor stood in front of her. Aerostolia's eyes slowly slid up the frame of the armor to the alien like mask in front of her.

"Are you okay?" She had heard past the suit. Aerostolia couldn't speak or move. Her legs had frozen and all words had left. She still couldn't register or process what had just happened. "Paladin Danse, she isn't quite responding." said the Brotherhood Knight. A woman slowly appeared by her side. She wore a different outfit, not quite armor, but some kind of uniform. "Are you okay? Can we get your name?" the woman asked, in an almost honey like voice. "A-Aerostolia.." she managed to barely speak. "Aerostolia, my name is Scribe Haylen. This is Knight Shredder, Knight Rhys is in the Cambridge station with our Paladin, Paladin Danse. Please come with us to the station. We need to have you looked out. You shouldn't have been out in the middle of this fire." Haylen gently grabbed Aerostolia's arms and helped her stand before leading her towards the police station.

At the front, two men in armor were patrolling with larger scoped rifles. Aerostolia watched them stare at her as she followed beside Haylen towards the police station. As she passed by she heard one of the men whisper about her eyes, before noticing Haylen staring at her. Aerostolia swallowed. That was it, the BOS. If they knew she was a synth, she would be executed. Haylen gave her a small smile then looked back towards the doors of the station. "I had a friend of mine get your surgery before." she added softly, which caused Aerostolia to stare at her shocked. "My friend used to be blind and visited Doc Crocker. He gave her synthetic eyes so she could see again. That's why you got them right?" she added. Normally Aerostolia wouldn't lie, but she felt her life to be in danger and in these strangers very hands. "Yes. Yes." she smiled and nodded, "I used to be able to see and went blind in a bad accident. He helped me see again." She added softly, only to get a reassuring squeeze to her shoulder from Haylen. "Don't worry. Paladin Danse knows her too and he will understand. He's an amazing man and will take care of you. I promise."

Aerostolia only frowned nervously as she entered the large building with Haylen and was sat on a cot in a small room, that was likely a make-shift infirmary. After what felt like hours, though Aerostolia severely doubted it, Haylen returned to the room, followed by a taller, fit man. He was wearing a suit, an orange suit that was probably some sort of uniform for their organization. The taller male approached Aerostolia and quickly froze, his icy blue eyes locked desperately to her face. Haylen quickly leaned up and whispered into the male's ear. He nodded then slowly walked over to Aerostolia, sitting in a chair that was directly in front of her. "You must be Aerostolia." the male said. Aerostolia only stared up at him, her eyes following his features carefully. He had dark hair, icy blue eyes, a few scars on his face and a surprisingly well groomed goatee. He was handsome to say the least. Aerostolia only nodded at him and looked back down.

"My name is Paladin Danse of the Brotherhood of Steel." Aerostolia glanced back at Danse, his features softening.

"We have been searching quite a bit for you." Aerostolia's eyed quickly widened.

Oh no.

 **(A.N)**

 **Anything you guys would love to read about or any ideas you have would be great. I will be updating this more often ^^ I do also use a mod for Danse! Adding Link so you guys can check it out for yourself. Also please like the user if you enjoy and use the mod!**

 **/en/mods/fallout4/mod-detail/1056379 Mod for Danse :D**


	4. Chapter 4 Danse's Protege

**(NSFW WARNING!)**

Today was an important day to Aerostolia, or at least it would be if she truly cared about what she actually did there. But today she'd get to see her Paladin, someone she had bonded herself to as a protection tactic, after he had been gone for 2-3 weeks on a mission. It had been 3 months since she was separated from Gage, met Danse and yet still, she remembered it clearly like it was just yesterday.

Aerostolia had moved from the broke down car to the inside of a building and ducked down behind a desk, her eccentric blue eyes glimpsing past the small space between the desk and the small cabinet beside it at the body of one of her fallen comrades. She swallowed hard at the sight of his split torso and quickly averted her gaze to the many figures behind him. Her eyes had then been focused on one thing and one alone. The many ghouls that had her surrounded. Aerostolia quickly inhaled and glanced down at her 2 shot M1 Garand, the same gun Gage had given her before she left. It had quickly become one of her most prized possessions.

She quickly pulled back the latch, sending a few empty casings from the bullets dropping to the floor and around her boots. "Shit.." she mumbled as she ravenously dug through the pockets of her cut-off jeans. She quickly popped the bullets into her clip and loaded them back into place before pulling up her rifle, her eye glancing through the scope at the many ferals. Quietly she exhaled, before pulling in a soft breath, the scope taking in every bit of ground, before she fired a round that shot a ghoul directly between the eyes. "Bullseye." She chuckled, rather proud of her aim. She had shot guns for as long as she could remember and as she got older her aim got better. Now at 24, Aerostolia was probably one of the best shots in the common wealth.

Some rustling emerged from behind Aerostolia, causing her to draw back and under the desk. Oh no.. what would she do if one of her men had become a ghoul? How would she explain this to Gage? She didn't care. She just wanted him to find her. She quickly reloaded her gun, then sat, her eyes glancing just at the ground behind her for lingering shadows. One. A loud grimacing growl echoed from the charred ghouls throat, causing a small stir in Aerostolia. God how she hated the sounds they made, her spine arching and skin breaking in goosebumps at the oh familiar growl. She let out short shallow breaths due to panic that was welling into her chest. She quickly shut her eyes, trying to elude all the images and sounds from her mind.. Then darkness.

 _No._

 _Not again..._

 _Not here!_

 _The sweet humming of '60 Minute Men' by The Dominoes was heard playing low in the background. Aerostolia continued to do her spins, her blue eyes falling back tot he yellow glowing hues of the synth she had grown to love and trust so dearly._

 ** _"You know.. I love watching you dance.."_** _Nick said in an almost hushed tone as he watched her from below his fedora. Aerostolia only smiled at him before blowing him a soft kiss through her fingers in which he grabbed from the air and jokingly stuck into his front pocket on his jacket._

 _The room spun into blackness, he vanished and screams were heard echoing and ripping through the air. Aerostolia panicked only to realize the screams were coming from.. They were coming from him? But why..._

Aerostolia gasped, inhaling quickly to shake off the anxiety creeping onto her and with that jumped from her hiding spot, her gun hilted by her shoulder and now aiming at the female soldier that had somehow managed to slip into the building soundlessly and unbeknownst to her.

"Hey!" Haylen yelled, her hands raised in defense at the large barrel pointed to her face. "I saw you from nearby and made my way over here. Paladin Danse and the remaining group could use you, our entire station is over run. Please I am begging you." The look on her face was enough to say it all. She wasn't lying and was in genuine turmoil over her comrades.

Aerostolia wasn't normally the kind to help others, in fact she avoided most people as now of days you couldn't trust anyone. Aerostolia quickly glanced outside and down the streets away where she saw a mass army of ghouls running at the Cambridge Police Station. "Fuck.." Aerostolia muttered, which was returned with a smile from Haylen.

"You'll help?" she asked almost pleadingly, "If so please. We have to get to the others."

Aerostolia let out an incredibly loud and annoyed sigh before bolting out the door and down the streets, Haylen shortly behind her. She quickly hulled up her gun and started firing round after round into the thick mass of ghouls. After every loud crack that echoed through the sky, a ghoul would drop in its place. As they approached the station, Aerostolia made quick notice of how many there were. Her gun wouldn't suffice to this amount and so she mounted it and quickly dug into her pockets, her hands pulling back to relish the spiked brass knuckles she had made-shift. Haylen had run past the large posts in front of the station and started shooting at ghouls.

Aerostolia, made her way out the front. With every swing, she'd laugh at each crunch the ghoul's face would make after encountering her fists. One after another, the ghouls slowly started dropping, until very few remained. Aerostolia had made her way back inside and as she did Danse instantly took notice to her.

"Who is that, Haylen?" Danse asked quietly, his steely blue eyes locked onto the mysterious girl.

"I'm not sure, Sir. She was the one firing the rounds from one of the buildings up ahead."

Danse's expression said it all. He glanced back to Aerostolia, his eyes in bewilder and another strange emotion, as he watched her drop the last ghoul. How could someone so small, contain such power? "Have her meet me in the station. Sit her in our medics and have her wounds attended too." With that Danse bound towards the door, with Haylen saluting him the famous BOS salute.

Haylen quickly turned and made her way back to Aertostolia who was now walking in their direction. She gave a small whistle and was quickly followed by Shredder, who was clanking in his large suit of armor.

Aerostolia had glanced back at him, her ocean blue hues glancing over the amazing armor the male was wearing. "Wow. That is pretty cool." She said, gesturing to his armor. A small smile quickly lit his face, but was instantly replaced with a more serious one.

"We want to thank you for your help civilian. You are exceptional with those guns. Have you had training before?" Haylen asked curiously.

Aerostolia glanced back at her gun, "I was more self-taught then trained. I don't quite remember where it even stemmed from.." she murmured, her mind dropping to Nick and then of course Gage, who would be worried sick. She quickly glanced back at Haylen, noticing that the other female must've seen her look. She quickly replaced her worry with a smile and rubbed the back of her arm nervously. "Honestly I'm happy I came to help.. I wasn't sure how many of you there were." Aerostolia said sheepishly, before glancing down, "I was thinking it was just a couple.. I had no clue you had so many people stuck in here.."

Haylen noticed this and watched her features, before extending her hand. "My Paladin is just inside and would love to meet you. I want to thank you for helping us." She added, gently shaking Aerostolia's hand with a grip that was firm but tender. She gestured to the building behind her and started walking towards the building.

Aerostolia, more dumbfounded then anything, watched after Haylen. A bit confused she followed after Haylen into the building, shutting the door securely behind her. Haylen had led her to a medic room, where she sat delicately on one of the cots, her eyes watching the many injured soldiers and panicked ones as well. Minute by minute went by and Aerostolia would glance down at her gun, her eyes full of panic. "Gage…. Where are you…" and within that instant a taller male had strode through the door, wearing a simpler orange soldier uniform. Her blue eyes quickly cast at his face, taking in his charming features.

Steely blue eyes met back to the subtle glowing ones of Aerostolia. A hand reached out as the male dropped down to one knee so that he was face to face with the smaller female. He had a few scars about his face, but he was alluring. A small smile cut from his face as he extended his hand to take Aerostolia's. "I want to thank you for saving my people," Danse said softly, "I'm not sure what would've happened if you hadn't come when you did." He added.

Aerostolia only watched his moves in a confused manner. She wasn't sure what to make of any of this. "I was only doing what I could." She added sheepishly. Her eyes quickly dropped to the ground, scanning over the lines and etches that were made into the worn floor. A small gasp befell her lips when her chin was raised with his hand to once more meet his eyes. "I am serious.. I'd like to ask you to join the brotherhood. I would personally sponsor you. I strongly believe you have what it takes to be a great soldier. You showed me that." He said in a soft almost sweet tone.

Aerostolia, more dumbfounded then anything, watched Danse's features. This wasn't something she'd normally have agreed to, but maybe it could help her pass the time until Gage came to get her. Aerostolia quickly grabbed his hand in a firm shake and gave him a bright smile. "I would have no greater honour then serving by your side, Sir." She added sweetly.

Danse's face instantly lit up and once he released Aerostolia's hand, he had gestured for her to follow close by. "Amazing. Now I need to ask your help. We have a small situation. Our radios are down and Haylen has found a radio transmitter nearby. We need to run and grab this transmitter, then make our way back so we can get the wounded some support. One of my knights is injured…" he went on, "And I'll be damned if I lose another." Danse added. He quickly looked back to Aerostolia, nearly pleading with his eyes that she accompany him in this mission.

Aerostolia could see the pain in his face, though he tried desperately to hide it, "Of course Paladin." She said softly, which was relieving as she saw Danse's face lighten up.

Aerostolia and Danse had easily located the transmitter and returned it. He had then taken her to the Prydwen and now, months later, here she was lying on her cot, her eyes locked onto the metal ceiling above her. Danse had since been sent on a mission and Aerostolia had made herself familiar with the Prydwen, while awaiting her Paladin's return and still with hope, Gage would one day come find her.

"Haylen! Return fire!" Danse screamed as he bolted after his scribe, who had been cornered by a gunner. He quickly pulled up his laser rifle and shot the gunner in the head, which instantly vaporized him into a pile of ash. Haylen gasped and dropped to the floor, her eyes wide with fear as she had almost met her death.

"Paladin I'm so… I'm so sorry.." she mumbled quietly, the look of fear stricken across her gaunt features.

Danse only stared at her, his blue eyes bright against the blood and dirt that smeared his face. "Haylen get up. We need to move." He added. Haylen nodded and jumped up, grabbing hold of the bag they had been sent out to fetch for Captain Kells. Once Danse had taken notice of this, he gestured Haylen to follow him and started to make his way out of the large hospital and past the mass of bloodied bodies. "We need to get these back to the Prydwen." He stated, his eyes scanning the area for any hostile activity.

"Sir what if we can't make it back with it?" she said quietly, one of the first in her life she was doubting herself. "Sir we have been out here for 2 weeks on a mission that should've only taken us 8 hours.. We have been bombarded with enemies and we're running dangerously low on ammo.. We already lost several knights sir.."

Danse stared at her, almost baffled at the thought that she hadn't seen much hope in their mission. "We will make it Haylen. We have been in tougher situations. I know we had some set-backs and been out longer than anticipated but have faith. We have to make it back to the Prydwen!" He said as he ran off ahead, his steps clanking loudly with the armor that coated his body.

Haylen only sighed and glanced at the ground, her body shaking and her voice just below her breath, "You only want to get back so you can see her again.." with that she bolted after Danse, who was firing into hostiles around the area. Haylen quickly pulled a vertibird grenade from one of her many pockets then threw it to a nearby spot and watched as the blue smoke arose high into the sky. "Grenade launched sir!"

"Perfect!" Danse stated, "We just need to stay alive until she arrives!" He screamed over the roar of her gun as he dropped gunner after gunner and the many wild creatures that were circling them. Hours had ridden by and Danse didn't let up. A roaring was soon heard overhead that slowly grew louder. Danse stared at the sky and smiled when the Vertibird came into view, a large smile breaking out onto his features as he and the few remaining soldiers jumped in place at their rescue. "We did it Haylen!" he said loudly, which was followed by the excited cries from the soldiers and Haylen herself. The vertibird circled a few times before dropping to the street, the running blades lifting dust off the street. "Get in here!" the pilot shouted as Haylen, the few soldiers and Danse ran up and jumped into the copter. "Let's move." Danse yelled over the roar of the aircraft, which then lifted and took off.

Aerostolia was down with Proctor Quinlan, looking over a few of his projects and folders. She sighed as she skimmed the information in front of her, attempting to make herself appear busy. She hated being set on duty that involved not leaving the Prydwen. She'd rather be out in the wastelands, shooting at ghouls or supermutants, hell even looking for Gage if she had to, then sitting bored on the ship. After all she didn't have anyone to talk to other then Danse and the reoccurring dreams about Nick and Gage were starting to haunt her and make it impossible for her to sleep. Aerostolia had made it a point to avoid most of the people on the aircraft as the majority seemed to judge her harshly for being picked up from the wasteland and instantly being sponsored by Danse.

She groaned and chucked the folder before retrieving the next, her eyes lost in the text, when the sound of an airlock door had opened from the main deck, causing Aerostolia to pull out of her stupor. She quickly jumped up and about fell out of her chair as she threw the folders and bound down the corridors to the main door. A few soldiers ducked out of her way as she bound towards, what she had hoped was her Paladin. Aerostolia gasped at the sight of him and quickly bolted to her Paladin, her worried eyes skimming every feature of his face. "Paladin!"

Danse, who had looked mad and beyond exhausted, flickered his eyes to his young protégé after hearing her voice and almost instantly his face calmed. God how he had missed seeing her face. Those big blue eyes. Aerostolia ran up to Danse and quickly encircled him in a hug, not caring who saw her unneeded display of affection. She hadn't cared for appropriate rules or any of that crap right now, she was just happy to see Danse return alive and in one piece. A small chuckle had fallen from his chest as he gently squeezed her, then grabbed her shoulders to push her back lightly. "How was work on the Prydwen?" he asked her, in an attempt to change the subject from the many staring eyes.

Aerostolia only huffed and clicked her tongue at this question, the sound of annoyance in her voice, before her arms folded across her chest. Danse quickly blinked and stared at her confused. "Have I upset you?"

"Don't change the subject. Your room. Now." She huffed before quickly dodging to the left and into the Paladin's quarters. Haylen only rolled her eyes, unsure herself if it was out of jealousy or just annoyance, though she believed it to be the first, then walked down the corridors as Danse made his way to the room Aerostolia had hidden in.

Danse gently shut the door behind him, then glanced at Aerostolia, his steely eyes locking onto her face and smaller frame. "I'm sorry I was gone for so long… I hadn't meant to stay that long.. So.. What did I do now?" he teased, which was responded to with a small snort from the smaller female.

"I was worried. You didn't send me any messages, no radio contact.. What if you had.." she started, which was cut short by Danse, who had gently rested his hands on her shoulders.

"I am fine. I came back, didn't I?" he added, as if more meaning stood behind those words then she knew.

"Danse it isn't a matter of you making it back, though I'm grateful.. I was scared you were hurt.. Or god knows what.." She mumbled below her breath. Danse only sighed as his hands instinctively slid down her arms, his fingertips barely brushing across the skin, which caused the smaller female to twitch and her skin to break out in goosebumps.

"I'm sorry." He said, as a light blush creeped across his cheeks at her soft movements. He stared down at her smaller frame, heat rising high in his chest. He then glanced up at her pursed lips, almost lost in thought and on impulse and sheer desire to do so, he quickly pushed into the female, his lips crashing against her in a deep heated kiss.

Aerostolia's eyes widened as his body pressed into hers, causing small whimpers to fall from her mouth which only resulted in the Paladin tightening his grip on her. She nearly pulled away but quickly melted against Danse's chest, her tongue lapping hungrily at his soft lips. He groaned and without hesitation opened his mouth, but rather than let her dominate, he had squeezed her chin just enough to cause her mouth to gape and plunged his tongue deep into the wet crevasse of her mouth. A sweet sound rolled from her chest as his hands slid up and down her arms, slightly more firm before dropping to her waist, giving her hips gentle kneading squeezes. Danse had dreamt of this moment, far more then he had ever let on and now that it was happening it was as if he couldn't stop. The taste of her mouth, sweet like nectar, only caused his head to grow fuzzy with the strange feeling overwhelming his body. Danse quickly pulled back leaving Aerostolia breathless and panting heavily, her face a bright red.

Danse blushed a bright red and quickly cupped his mouth at her livid face, then shook his head as he shoved her back onto his bed before dropping to his knees beside the bed and between her legs.

"D-Danse?" she said quietly, which soon turned into a breathy moan as she felt his mouth cover her entire nether region. Her fingers quickly tangled into the blankets as Danse made way with removing her pants so that she was lying in her panties and her shirt. He leaned forward and slid his tongue across the folds in her panties, causing the smaller female to writhe below him. His hands gripped her hips and forcibly he held her waist down as he bit the rim of her panties and pulled them down with his teeth.

"Sit still." He ordered, before leaning down and taking her entire mound into his mouth. Aerostolia gasped and bit her lip to silence the sounds she desperately wanted to make. Danse was too lost in his own thoughts to notice, his tongue hungrily lapping at her clit and the sweet wet entrance he was teasingly prodding at. With a gentle groan, he plunged his tongue into her wet folds, his hands gripping her hips tighter as he groaned lowly at the sweet taste of her.

Aerostolia's hips rolled against Danse's mouth and as best as they could against his vice grip. Her mind was swimming and flooded as pleasure rolled over her body. "P-Please. D-Danse I want more. Please." She cooed, which caused Danse to stir. He quickly sat up then flipped her with ease so that her back end was hanging off the bed whilst she rested on her chest. Some sounds were heard from behind her, but none of it mattered as she buried her face into the bed to hide her cry from the large hot shaft that penetrated her and filled her up. Danse groaned and gripped her hips, slowly pulling out before ramming back into her, his mind clouded with pleasure. One thrust after another would bring small cries from Aerostolia and groans from Danse as he felt his throbbing shaft dripping it's sweet sticky pre, into her soft belly.

Aerostolia gasped loudly and glanced hazily at the wall, unable to process thoughts in her mind or even form words as Danse pounded her relentlessly. An intense feeling shot through her body as he crashed into her sweet spot, resulting in her burying her face to avoid letting out loud cries of pleasure. Danse moaned huskily and quickly jerked her back against his pelvis region, his body writhing as his hot seed drained from his large shaft and swelled inside her belly. He let out a deep rigid breath and leaned against his hands on the bed, his eyes staring down at the back of the beautiful femme before him. "I-I'm sorry I was going to pull out. I just got caught.." he swallowed, almost embarrassed at himself for not being able to control his body.

Aerostolia was panting quietly on the bed, but had fallen asleep shortly after due to being worn out and many sleepless nights worrying over Danse. He panted and watched her carefully, a small smile quickly capturing his lips.

He couldn't really carry her from his room to hers. That'd be too obvious. He let out a short breath, pulled away from Aerostolia and after getting his boxers back on, slowly lifted Aerostolia with one arm, while pulling the covers back with the other. He gently laid her down, pulling the covers over her before leaving the room to tidy himself up. Danse sighed and walked down the dimly lit corridors, his eyes glancing from the cots that the many other soldiers slept on. He would glance from each soldier, some still talking to others, some reading and others already asleep. How strange. When he had first gotten here everything seemed normal. The way these soldiers acted, was normal. Until he met Aerostolia that is.

She flipped his entire world upside down, made Danse have to rethink things and deal with strange new emotions he hadn't experienced before. And now, seeing these soldiers, carry on, with their strict rules, it seemed strange. Strange that anyone would cut off such an outer worldly affection. Such an intimate feeling. He only shook his head after he turned a corner and walked into the bathroom, his eyes focusing on himself in the mirror. He only gave himself a slightly goofy grin, his memories flashing back to what had just happened moments before. It was so euphoric. Danse turned the faucet on and splashed his face with water when Knight Rhys walked in, followed by two other Knights.

Rhys was babbling when he noticed Danse, staring intently on his Paladin. "Paladin, you look different. Are you okay?" he asked, which received a confused look from Danse and the two other Knights.

"I'm fine Rhys. Why do you ask?" Danse said quietly, his steely eyes carefully watching the reflections of his comrades in the mirror.

"Not sure. Just something seems different." He said quietly, before nearly jumping back after one of the knights gasped loudly. "The hell?" Rhys asked. The knight behind him only started laughing and approached Danse, giving him a gentle nudge to the shoulder.

"Oh man, did you get laid Paladin?" Rhys and the other knight quickly looked wide eyed at Danse, who then felt cornered. He shut the water off and turned to face the Knights, his expression nothing short of a deep glare.

"Watch your tone and how you speak to your higher ups." Danse hissed, before hurriedly leaving the bathroom. He groaned and quickly made his way back to his room, where he shut the door behind him. Danse glanced over to the sleeping silhouette of Aerostolia and slowly crawled into the bed beside her.

What was he doing? He was risking everything he had worked for, for this.. girl. Danse groaned and dropped his head back into his pillow, his eyes falling once more to the shape lying beside him. Almost reluctantly Danse gently grabbed hold of her waist and slowly withdrew her body back against his chest. He quickly shut his eyes, then circled his arms tightly around her waist, his face burying into the back of her neck. Danse let out a content sound at the smell of her hair, then without fault fell asleep.


	5. Chapter 5 A Familiar Face

**3 months previously.**

Gage grew irate as he paced from each side of the main entrance to Nuka Town, his emerald green skewing the wastelands before him for any sign of movement. It had grown dark and Gage wasn't keen on that, because that meant something had gone terribly wrong. "Where in the fuck.." he hissed, quickly halting as dark figure ran towards the entrance before collapsing to the ground shortly before Gage and a few other raiders who had been standing out with him. Gage's eye narrowed as he stared in dismay at only Dusty, who was bloodied and gasping for breath.

"Ghouls.. everywhere… I lost them Gage.. I lost them both, I'm sorry!" he pleaded. All sound slowly turned into a loud ringing that echoed in Gage's head. He watched Dusty's lips, but heard no sound as the world started spiraling out of control. A gut wrenching feeling buried itself into Gage's stomache and pushed itself up into his chest and spread through his veins.

"Where.. is… she.." he hissed, the words spewing out like poison daggers at Dusty. Dusty quickly caught himself in his throat, the swallow loud enough for Gage to hear it. "I don't know Gage.. I lost he-" but before he finished, Gage had cracked his steel toe into the side of Dusty's head, a loud grisly sound echoing past the walls. The look of death had taken over Gage's features, his eye dilated and blank with no expression. His breathing grew rigid and with one swoop he pulled up his rifle and let out a loud holler. Within minutes many raiders were surrounding Gage, all with their guns holstered to their sides. "Fucking find her!" he ordered, the loud cheer and screams coming from the raiders, who were more than please to wreak havoc on the wastelands while locating her. The raiders all grabbed up their items and quickly ran after Gage into the dark of the wastelands.

 **Present.**

Aerostolia had awoken the next morning with a 'special' mission to travel to Diamond City. She had readied her gear and pulled her outfit together, her hair tied back into a loose ponytail to top her look. A small sigh left her lips as she picked up the folder from Proctor Quinlan once more and read over a few of the parts she'd need to purchase from one of the stores. "Okay.. So you're dropping me off right? So I don't have to travel the whole way?" she murmured. Quinlan gave a small nod before adding, "But remember we can only drop you outside of the gate. Getting back is all on you, the vertibird will be needed for some other missions."

Aerostolia only sighed and gave a small nod before she left the room and made her way down the corridors she had come to know so well in the past 3 months. Her eyes were looming to the ground when she bumped into someone, causing her to topple back before catching herself. "Oh! I'm so sor-" she started as she was yanked down into a hug from Danse himself. "You better come back in one piece." He muttered below his breath, his grip refusing to release her. "You know I will." She chuckled, looking up into her Paladin's eyes before planting a tender kiss to the base of his jaw line. "I need to get going or I'll miss my ride." She cooed gently, which was quickly returned with by an unseen kiss from Danse.

"I mean it.." he said softly.

Aerostolia gave a small nod then walked past Danse and out of the large door that lead her out to the bridge of the Prydwen. She gasped at the rather chill air, pulling her coat a tad tighter to her body. She quickly pulled her scarf up over he mouth and walked over to the vertibird, hanging in its glider. She gave one final look to the door of the Prydwen before pulling herself up onto the vertibird, her breath held in her throat as the copter descended to the ground below. Many buildings rushed past the vertibird and it only showed how glorious the wastelands had been at one point. Some buildings reached straight into the skies, while others just blossomed with beautiful architecture. The vertibird made its final round as it lowered to the street just outside of Diamond City. Aerostolia gave a nod to the pilot then made her way up to the large gate that hid the city, her brow arching at the raven haired girl who was yelling into a speaker.

"I'm serious let me in! You can't lock me out, I live here!" she yelled back to the voice who was taunting her. "You know I can't do that Piper! You made the mayor mad!"

"By writing?! What happened to freedom of speech?!" she yelled, before her gaze fell back to Aerostolia. "Hey!" she said softly, "Who are you? Are you trying to get into Diamond City?" she asked quietly. Aerostolia's eyes never moved, but under a much gentle tone she quirped, "I don't think that's really anyone's business.."

"Hey no harm. Just go with it.." she cooed before turning back to the speaker, "What's that? You're a trader you say? You hear that? You gonna turn away a trader who might have some things we need?" Piper retorted to the speaker, in which a long sigh came from. A buzz was sounded as the large gate lifted to the entrance of the city, Aerostolia's eyes widening at the sight before her. "Wow.." she added quietly.

"Hey thanks for going with it." Piper said to Aerostolia, "I'm Piper by the way. I would like to ask you a few questions sometimes, whenever you're free just stop by the Publik Occurrence." She smiled and waved, before running into the city. Aerostolia watched her bolt off, a little dumbfounded by the overly friendly attitude of this girl. She only sighed and walked inside, her eyes gleaming down the stairs into the city. Aerostolia froze and quickly dropped to her knees, her eyes flickering at the sight.

 _Calm down…_

Her breathing grew rapid as her chest tightened and quickly she jumped up and bolted down the stairs, into the back alley of Diamond City. She dropped to her knees at the corner that lead into the backs of the city, raining dripping down from the sky and across the surface of the buildings. Aerostolia gasped as the rain hit her skin and dropped down her hair, her eyes gliding across the ground.

Why is this place.. So familiar.. ?

She sat up, then leaned back into the building, letting her eyes fall close as she listened to the sound of the rain, which soon put her into a trance like state.

 ** _"_** ** _I will never let anyone hurt you.. Do you understand? If you have to run, then run."_**

 _Nick leaned over and brushed a few strands of hair from Aerostolia's face before leaning over and planting a gentle kiss to her temple._ _ **"I could never forgive myself or anyone, if they hurt you.."**_

 _Why would he hurt her?.._

 _Aerostolia glanced up to Nick's face, tears streaking her cheeks as she pieced that this could be the last she ever saw of him._ _ **"You can't just leave me.."**_ _she pleaded, her fingers gripping tightly to the fabric of his shirt._

 ** _"_** ** _I will always be here.. Just call for me.."_**

Aerostolia gasped and sat up quickly, her eyes darting around the smaller room she was in. Confused, she glanced down at the oddly familiar bed,running her fingers along the soft fabric, her eyes casting across the room to a younger woman who was sitting by Piper and talking. "Excuse me?" Aerostolia stuttered, which was returned with a few gasps as Ellie and Piper rushed to her side.

"Oh man, we didn't think you'd wake up!" Piper said quietly, gently rubbing at her brows. Ellie only sighed and sat in a chair beside the bed, before giving Aerostolia a small smile.

"I was walking with Piper and we noticed you passed out on the side walk… So we brought you here.. Mr. Valentine is out right now, he had a case to piece together, but he'll be back first thing in the morning, if you don't mind waiting to meet him. I'm sure he could use some help with cases and I had asked him to pick you up something to eat..." Ellie added sweetly. Aerostolia froze and stared blankly at Ellie, her eyes wide as if she had seen a ghost. Piper noticed this and gently nudged Ellie, her brow arching slenderly.

"Are you okay?" she questioned. Aerostolia only shook her and let out a sharp breath she had been holding for the majority of the time.

"Valentine?..." She asked quietly, "Nick… Valentine?" Ellie and Piper glanced to each other then back at Aerostolia, their eyes full of worry and confusion. Ellie had a strange look take over the features of her face before she quickly got up and walked into the other room, scouring through many files in her drawers.

Piper on the other hand, sat on the edge of the bed by Aerostolia and watched her, almost unnervingly. "You okay?" Piper asked quietly, only to receive a look from Aerostolia.

"Did she say.. Nick Valentine?" Aerostolia asked. Almost on queue Ellie gasped from the next room and called to Piper, who turned to Aerostolia and lifted her finger to indicate '1 minute.' She quickly bolted into the next room and whispered to Ellie who was pointing at a file on the desk, her eyes wide with confusion. Piper only stared blankly at the file before the two of them turned their gazes back to Aerostolia.

"We can't let her know or run her off. We **need** her to stay the night.." Ellie whispered. Piper only nodded in accordance, as they had only ever wanted the best for Valentine and walked to the door at the front of the Agency, practically standing watch while her eyes locked onto Aerostolia, who was staring bewildered at the two females. She inhaled sharply as a hot feeling spread through her chest, causing her lungs to tighten and for her to gasp a few times for breath.

"Please tell me what's going on!" Aerostolia demanded. Ellie let out a small shrill cry at the yell from the smaller female, then quickly walked herself over to the bed with a bottle of purified water.

"Here please drink this.. If you stay until morning, I will tell you everything… I swear.." her eyes pleaded as her hands clutched the bottle and then handed it to Aerostolia. Begrudgingly she dropped back onto the bed and flipped onto her side, her eyes locked onto the articles and papers hanging from the wall. She quickly shut her eyes, drowning out any and all noise that was emitting from the outside world around her.

 _1…_

 _All she had to do was force herself to sleep until tomorrow.. That wouldn't be so hard right?_

 _2….3…..4…5…_

 _What was going to happen to her? Danse wouldn't be happy that's for sure… But who cares right?.. She needed.. Gage.._

 _27….28…29…_

 _Mile stone after mile stone of her accomplishment in the commonwealth.. Why couldn't she think of those to distract herself? Why was it so hard to sleep?!_

 _78….79…_

 _Please just be morning already…_

 _145….146…_

From the opposite side of the room, a door had creaked open followed by the heavy footsteps of… Who? That wasn't Piper.. She was much tinier and dainty, they couldn't be her steps. Then..

"Hey Ellie. Hey Piper."

Electricity rammed through her veins at the soft boston accent. Her body quickly tensed as her ears perked back at **that** voice. No… She quickly sat up and flashed her eyes open to the wall. It was much darker in the house now and all you could see were the faint glows from the small candles that were scattered about the agency. Aerostolia quickly glanced at the wall that was separating the room she was in, from whomever was just beyond it. Her body started shaking as she felt her breaths grow rapid and more shallow. Not this again. Not panic. She quickly stood up, her ears making out just barely what Ellie was whispering to Piper and the other voice.

"Nick… You are not going to believe this.." she cooed as she had assumingly pointed to the room Aerostolia was in.

Nick flickered his glowing yellow eyes to Ellie, then folded his arms across his broad chest. "Now come on, you know I don't like surprises." He mumbled as he walked himself back to his room. He pulled up one of the candles and used it to light up a cigarette he had pulled from his pocket, before popping it past his lips. Nick made a soft whirring sound as his mechanics moved and he turned the corner, his eyes focusing on the shadowed silhouette of the smaller female.

"Oh hey stranger. I didn't realize we had company." He laughed, only to notice Ellie and Piper's gaze from beside him. He quickly silenced and looked between the two, his features changing to that of discomfort. He abruptly walked forward into the room and sat the candle on the table before leaning against it, his eyes locked onto the smaller female, who very slowly raised her head, her electric glowing eyes locking onto that of the yellow ones. Nick's cigarette dropped from his lips and hit the floor, his expression changing and becoming much more difficult to read.

"I-It can't be…." He said quietly, before dropping to his knees in front of the smaller synth. He slowly reached one hand out, his eyes studying every visual aspect of her features. It was her. "Aerostolia?" Nick asked, his voice becoming higher as he waited for her to speak. "Please… say something.. Please.." he begged.

Aerostolia stared at him in bewilderment. She couldn't process what was happening. She couldn't understand. "No…." she mumbled, which caused Ellie and Piper to run by her side.

"Aerostolia please listen, I told you I would tell you and I know this will be hard to believe, but this is Nick Valentine… He's your husband.." Ellie said quietly. Aerostolia stared at Ellie then quickly jumped up from her spot and ran past everyone, with Nick following shortly behind her. She swung the door open then bolted form the agency and into the rain, her breaths shallow and rigid as she desperately tried to escape..

But why was she running? Isn't this what she had wanted? To know who he was?

Aerostolia yelped as her foot caught an uneven landing of wood, causing her to topple forward. She braced herself for impact, which never came as a strong hand had snatched her wrist and yanked her back into a small thud against the taller male's chest.

"Don't run please! I just got you back! Please talk to me!" Nick pleaded, his grip tight on her wrist. Aerostolia only panicked and stared at Nick, trying hard to yank her hand from his grip.

"Get off me! Let go!" she screamed as tears streaked her face, colliding with the rain that was already dampening it.

"No! Speak to me Aerostolia! I am begging you!" He yelled, before yanking her tight against his chest. And oddly enough, she felt her body simmer and her breathing relax. How could he..

"I don't.. I don't remember you.. please let me go.. All I will do is hurt you. I'm begging you to let me leave.." she whimpered, her body shaking with the small sobs. Nick frowned and gently pulled her against his chest, the metallic hand of his sliding across her spine.

"I will never let you leave again…. I can help you.. Trust me.." he cooed, as his other hand gently ran up the back of her neck to nestle in the confines of her soft hair. Aerostolia swallowed hard and let her hues meet with Nick's her face like that of a wounded puppy.

"I'm… I'm scared.." she whimpered. Nick frowned and gently cupped her face, before leaning forward to plant a gentle kiss to her forehead.

 _The smell of cigarettes and the wasteland…_

Nick gently bent down, his arms sliding across the back of her knees to scoop her up easily into his arms. Aerostolia encircled her arms around his neck and pressed against him, her eyes shutting tightly as she tried to wish herself awake. Only when she had opened her eyes and they were back in Nick's house, did she realize she was already awake.

Nick walked back into the room Aerostolia was in and over to the couch had sat her on, with a cup of hot tea. "Here, it's your favourite." He smiled, proud of himself for remembering his dearly beloved's favourite things. Ellie and Piper were sitting on the other couch watching her intently as she took the cup and stared down into it. A small warmth filled her chest as she raised the cup and lightly blew on it before taking a small sip. A small smile tugged at the corner of Aerostolia's lips, causing an even larger one to take over Nick's face. "Is it good? The way you like it?" he asked. Aerostolia only glanced at him, taking notice in how happy he looked, it made her sad. To think she had been the source of this man's happiness and she couldn't even imagine how long she'd been gone.

"It's perfect.. thank you." She whispered quietly, her eyes lost in the small cup. Ellie gently nudged Piper, who nodded.

Both quickly arose from their chairs with Ellie adding, "We are going to go out for a bit. Let you two catch up." And with that her and Piper had left the agency, leaving Nick and Aerostolia alone. Nick frowned and slowly sat up, before sitting beside Aerostolia, his eyes unmoving from her face.

"Where were you?.." he asked.

Aerostolia froze at this question. She swallowed hard, her hands shaking against the cup she tried so delicately to hold. She gasped as Nick's hands reached out and laid across hers to steady her drink. "Please…. Where did you go?.. Did you even.. Did you even try to find me?.." he asked in a wounded voice.

Aerostolia jolted up and stared over at Nick, her eyes wide and glassy. "I…. I can't remember…" she added quietly. Nick gently pulled the cup from her hands and sat it atop the table before them, then turned to face Aerostolia.

"Do you remember the accident?" he asked quietly, which caused Aerostolia to panic and quickly shut her eyes. Nick noticed this and only moved closer, before gently encircling his arms around her small frame, giving her a gentle tug against his chest. He watched her carefully and slowly lowered himself back into the couch, being careful as he lightly pulled her on top of him, her head soon resting on his chest. He exhaled softly and slid his fingers across her shoulders, his face full of sadness as he watched the woman he loved, fighting with demons in her head.

"I.. I was killed by.. by debris wasn't I?" she said quietly. Nick only swallowed and watched her features, before giving a very small nod to her.

"Yes.. You were.." he said quietly.

"So how am I here?" she said in more of a mutter. "I woke up in a station alone.. You.. You weren't there.." she fell quiet, her eyes falling to the floor. Nick quickly perched himself up on one arm, keeping her held tightly to him.

"No! I didn't leave you!" he yelled, which caused Aerostolia to jump back slightly. "I'm sorry.." he swallowed, "But I didn't leave you… Call it selfish but I begged them… to give you back to me…. I'm sorry Aerostolia.. I'm the reason.. that you're a synth…" Aerostolia's eyes quickly shot up and locked onto Nick's. She stared at him hard, but couldn't process what to even say.

"Why…" she mumbled, her brows furrowed in frustration.

"Because I loved you… I still do.. You were the best to ever happen to me.. We went on a case and I begged you to stay home but you wanted to help me.." he laughed slightly at this, "You always wanted to help… then.. Then the building collapsed above us and I tried to get to you.. I begged you to run! You just.. You sat there and I watched as the woman I had devoted my meaningless life to, died in front of me.. I couldn't handle the guilt.. And so I took you to Doctor Amari.. I begged her to give you back to me.. I didn't care in what way, but I couldn't give you up Aerostolia.. You were the only thing in this world that was ever mine.. And she did. She brought you back. I couldn't have been more ecstatic. But then you stared at us like monsters. You were confused and ran. I lost you in the storm… For 20 years… I sat and waited.. hoping you'd come back.." Aerostolia slowly sat back, her eyes locked onto Nick as she tried to process what he had said. 20 years? She had been gone that long?

"20…" she started, which was cut short by Nick's hands gently sliding across her cheeks.

"I missed you…" he frowned. If he could cry, she could tell he would've been. The hurt that stuck on his face, was enough to break her heart. Aerostolia only leaned forward and gently slid her finger across Nick's lips. Soft.. Human like.. Just like the dream.. or maybe memory she had, had. Aerostolia quickly closed the distance between the two, her mind racing with a million things, but only one right now she needed to confirm. She lightly pressed her lips against Nick's who was clearly surprised, but had instantly wrapped his arms around her waist to pull her tightly against him for a deeper one. She gasped and laid into his chest, a soft whine leaving her mouth as his tongue prodded against the seam of her lips. She whimpered and lightly parted her lips, purring as the male's pushed past her mouth and danced across the crevasses of her mouth.

After a few short minutes Aerostolia pulled back and glanced into Nick's eyes before a memory hit the front of her mind.

 ** _"You won't ever just up and vanish on me, will ya?"_** _he said quietly, his hue slowly making it's way to Aerostolia's face. She looked at Gage silently and perplexed, before parting her lips to speak._

 ** _"What reason would I have?"_** _but she knew the look on Gage's face. She knew all too well he was thinking of this Nick character._

 ** _"Gage.. if you're asking about Nick.."_** _she said. Gage quickly sat up, his eye drilled into her as he awaited her response._ _ **"As much as I wish I could understand my memories, I won't leave. I don't know who this Nick is. Or even where he is for that matter. As much as I know, he could very well be dead. Right now I'm here with you and so long as you do me no wrong I will loyally follow you anywhere in the wastelands."**_

 _Gage watched her features carefully, before letting out a small sigh which was followed by a light smile_ _ **. "I had hoped you'd say that Princess.. And I believe you.. I believe you won't leave.."**_ _he whispered as he reached up to Aerostolia's throat, his fingers quickly unlatching the collar with ease._

Aerostolia quickly sat up, her eyes lowered to the ground as she thought of Gage and how kind he had been to her even though it had only been a few days. Then she thought back to Danse, who was probably just as worried. Nick, noticing the look on her face frowned and reached his hand up to lightly caress her cheek. "What is it Aerostolia?"

"Nick.. There is a lot you need to know about me… Like firstly… I have a Master who hasn't seen me in 3 months and a Paladin who has fallen for me on the prydwen.." She whispered quietly, unwavering her glance. Nick froze at this and slowly pulled his hand back before letting out a small sigh. "I can't be mad.. You didn't remember me after all or even where you were.. But you're here now and that's what's impo-" He was quickly cut short by Aerostolia who had interrupted him mid sentence.

"No. They are probably worried sick and searching these wastelands for me..Nick.. Please understand.. I am not the same girl you fell in love with.. I can't even remember a thing about our marriage.. I need to go find Gage.. I have to be sure he's okay." She said quietly. Nick only stared at her in disbelief, the obvious heat ache sheer across his face.

"Aerostolia I am begging you not to leave.. If you do I will follow you into the wasteland and I will find you.. I cannot lose you again.. You're all I have in this life that was ever truly mine.."

Aerostolia frowned and gave a brief nod, sliding her legs over the edge of the couch to sit up properly. "I'm tired.. We should turn in for the night and do some catching up tomorrow." She said softly. Nick quickly sat up, a broad smile on his face and gave her a quick nod.

"Sounds good." He said softly. Aerostolia lied on the couch for minutes after Nick had made his way back to the room and told her to join shortly. She was trying to pass time and when she felt enough had passed she slowly tip toed to the back room where she saw Nick, snoozing on the bed with his hat over his face. She sighed softly and quickly approached the bed, grabbing her bag and boots before tip toeing to the door. "I am so sorry Nick…" she mumbled before creaking the door open and wandering out into Diamond City. Aerostolia had wandered over to a bench and was quickly pulling her boots on. She strung them up then yanked up her bag and bolted off to the stairway that lead out of the city, hoping that no one would notice her.

Aerostolia wandered out of the city and past the gates, before glancing back briefly. She let out a large breath and turned back to the ruined city, her eyes glancing around the destruction of the buildings. "Here we go.." She mumbled as she stepped forward and walked out into the city.

"Okay so we checked here and here.." Gage mumbled as he scratched out yet again another marker off the map. He looked up quickly and glanced around his surroundings. Out of the many raiders that had left with him in the last 3 months, only very few remained, including himself.

"Sir what about rerouting to Diamond City and just walking along the route?" said one of the female raiders. 2 of the males nodded and agreed with her, as all they wanted was for Gage to calm down. He had searched 3 months for Aerostolia. Many men had died along the way and Gage had nearly lost his life a multitude of times. He let out a loud groan and glanced back at the map, his finger trailing over one of the roads from Diamond City. "We have checked there several fucking times and if one more of ya tell me to do it the fuck again ima knock you out." He hissed, his words like poison.

"Sir I understand but think about it, if she needed to stock up she'd have gone back there and you can't say it isn't worth a try.." Gage glanced up at the female raider and quickly bit into his tongue to restrain himself. He stood up and yanked up his rifle, his green eye bright and piercing through the grime and blood covering his face and outfit. "Pack up we're heading out." He hissed, before glancing back down to the map at the Diamond City marker.

"I'm coming, Princess.."

 **"A.N"**

 **Thanks for sticking through and still reading if you are :D I'd really appreciate any feedback or ideas for the story^^ 3**


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